Back to School
by order.golden.beak
Summary: Modern day, but still in the avatar world, still bending, etc. Same characters, but some OC's. Kataang, sukka, maiko, toph/oc. Should be good and you need to review! Also, read my story- Kataang forever!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1- Just Breath

Aang looked down at the mountains of the Earth Kingdom. He gulped as he tried to find the school that would be his home for the next four years. He was soaring through the air on Appa. His lone suitcase resting on the saddle, and the chattering Momo residing in his shirt. He bit his lip. He remembered saying good bye to Gyatso at home. Aang's parents had abandoned him when he was a baby, and left their neighbors door, before they moved away, never to return.

Aang was the avatar. The last air bender as well. Gyatso could never bend, but he taught Aang all he could about bending air. He had read about the fighting style in books and saw pictures. Eventually, Aang had become an air bending master. But he still hadn't mastered the other three elements.

Aang continued looking down at the mountains. He had read that the boarding high school and college was in the high slopes of the Si Wong Mountain Range. Aang was nervous. What if he couldn't find it? And when he did, what would he do? He didn't know anyone at the school. He didn't really want people to know that he was the avatar either.

_There ,_he thought. Looking down from the sky he saw the school. High up in the mountains, he saw a massive building made from wood. There was a giant rock garden on one side, a good sized lake on the other, and in the back was a cleared area, mildly fenced off from the foliage. Earth, water, and fire training areas.

He lowered his bison in the front of the school. His eyes widened. The campus was gorgeous…. and huge. Aang took a deep breath and took his suitcase off of Appa's saddle. He walked towards the front door, which he guessed was the main building. As he began to enter the door, he though to himself, _Just Breath._

--

Katara had just pulled up into the driveway of the school. It was beautiful. A log cabin type building with a fire bending court, earth bending garden, and a _water bending area!_ Katara looked at it delightfully. Water was her element and passion. It drove her being.

She took her sparkly blue suitcase out of the trunk, and slung her midnight blue side pouch over her shoulder. She looked around the campus for someone she knew. Sokka, of course, was her brother, but she was looking for one of her friends. _Where's Toph_, she thought. She looked over at Sokka, stepping out of the vehicle. He had spotted Suki. They had all gone to school together. Katara, Sokka, Suki, Mai, Zuko, Toph, Azula, and Ty Lee. _Azula. _She disgusted Katara. She was popular, but probably because she was controlling and had a lot of money. He dad was a principle here. Her brother Zuko was a normal, nice teenager, who Katara and the rest of her friends, hung out with. They had all gone to Badger Mole Middle School in Ba Sing Se.

As she started walking up to the school, she saw Toph. And Toph "saw" Katara. Toph was born blind, but she sees with earth bending.

"Hey Toph!"

"Katara! I haven't seen you in forever. What's up? Do anything fun over the summer?"

"Not really. I'm just really excited for high school though! You do anything fun?"

"No. But, I am so excited. Come on, let's go see what classes we're in. I hope we have the same dorm!"

Katara and Toph walked up to the main office. As the front door came into view, Katara saw a boy walk in. She only saw him for a second, but he had stormy grey eyes, stunning dark brown and shaggy hair, and had a pet lemur residing on his shoulder. _He's so cute….. _Katara thought as her heart skipped a beat. Toph felt this and smirked. She had to admit, he was well built, just not the type for her. More of the type for Katara. And as he walked in through the door, Katara thought to herself, _Just Breath._

--

Sokka stepped out of his car and immediately saw Suki. He had had a crush on her since third grade. He was afraid to tell her his though, because he wasn't sure if she like him back. He grabbed his blue duffel bag and backpack, and headed towards Suki. He put a hand on her shoulder and she spun around.

"Hey, Sokka! Long time no see, eh?"

"Yah, that's for sure. So, uh, how you doing?"

"I'm great! How was your summer."

"Uneventful and boring. I wish I saw you and my other friends more often. I kind of just stayed at home like a snail sloth all day."

She giggled, "That's okay, I didn't do much either. I missed hanging out with you guys, though."

"Sorry, Sokka, I'd love to stay and talk with you more, but I promised Jade that I would meet her at the courtyard. We should meet up again though!"

Jade was another cheerleader. They were on the Kyoshi Cheerleading Squad together in middle school. None of the cheerleaders were benders, but they had some great self defense moves, so everyone just called their group the Kyoshi Warriors.

"Oh, okay," Sokka said somewhat solemnly, "I'll see you around."

Suki smiled and waved as she started walking towards the courtyard. Sokka looked down at his shoes once she had left, and kicked a small rock. He looked up to see where the rock had gone and saw Zuko. _Thank the spirits. Someone I know._

Sokka went over to Zuko. He had his arm wrapped around Mai's waist. They were laughing at something Zuko had said. They saw Sokka coming and Mai formed a modest, yet meaningful smile. Mai had a "dingy aura", so a smile, even of the slightest, was a very kind gesture.

"Hey Sokka. What's up?"

"Not much. Hi, Mai. How are you guys doing?"

"I'm pretty good," Zuko said yawning, "But, I didn't get much sleep last night."

"He said his room was too hot. I think it's just because he's a fire bender," Mai added snickering.

Sokka laughed, "Wow Zuko. Even your girlfriend thinks you're a little hot headed."

The couple blushed at the word "girlfriend".

"Well, I'll see guys later," Sokka said, "I need to get my schedule and dorm key."

"See you later Sokka!" Zuko called back, as Mai silently waved.

Sokka began heading the main office. As he opened the door, he saw Suki and Jade coming his way. He kept the door open for them.

"Thanks," Jade said as she walked in.

Suki just smiled as she walked in and then turned around and blew Sokka a kiss. Sokka's mouth opened as Suki just smirked and kept walking. Sokka just stood in front of the door holding it open as many people walked in, and he thought to himself, _Just Breath._


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2- Schedules and Dorms

Aang walked up to the front desk.

"Can I help you?" the smiling the lady said.

"Um, yeah. Please. I need my schedule and stuff," Aang said nervously.

"Name, please."

"Aang. I'm a freshman in high school."

The lady smiled and handed him a packet of paper.

"Here you go, dear. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask. Here's your dorm key," she said as she handed him a key.

"Thank you," Aang smiled slightly.

He looked down at his schedule. It read:

_Aang- HS Frosh_

_Period 1: Math with Professor Zhao_

_Period 2: Water Bending with Master Pakku_

_Period 3: Science with Professor Jeong Jeong_

_Period 4: Fire Bending with Master Roku_

_Period 5: Study Period_

_Period 6: Earth Bending with Master Bumi_

_Period 7: Geography with Master/Professor Piandoa_

_Period 8: History with Professor Iroh_

_Dorm: Hog Monkey Hall, ninth floor, room 947_

_You will have your first four periods one day, the next four the other. The days will alternate regularly unless told otherwise. Classes are from 9-10:30, 10:45-12:15, Lunch, 2:00-3:30, 3:45-5:15. Curfew is at eleven every night, unless there is a special event. Your key will give you access to your dorm, and you will need to go to the campus life office to get your Identification Card. You must show this card to get free meals, and must also present it before an event such as a dance. When you go to the campus life office, they will also give you a planner which has a map, calendar, and homework planner to keep track of day-to-day events. There is a campus store across the hall from the main office. You can buy your necessary books, school supplies, and backpack there. Have a great year!_

Ninth Floor! Aang thought as he was traveling to the campus life office. As he was looking at his paper, he didn't realize a girl was also walking in the door way. She was talking to her friend, and neither Aang nor she was paying attention. As against was about to open the door, he felt a push on his back. Soon, he was on the ground underneath the girl. She had sparkling blue eyes and long chocolate hair. Her hair graced over her creamy skin as she looked bewildered at what she had fallen on top of.

"I am so sorry," she said, getting off Aang.

"It's alright. I should have paid more attention."

The girl held out a hand for him to take so he could get up. He took it somewhat reluctantly.

"My name's Katara by the way. This is Toph," she said, looking over at the blind earth bender.

"My name's Aang. I was just going in to get my ID card and planner."

"Us too. Hey… um, what dorm are you in. We're in Hog Monkey Hall on the ninth floor. I can't believe we're going to have to carry all of our books up that huge flight of stairs!"

"I'm on the ninth floor too! What room are you guys in?" Aang seemed to be making friends.

"We're in 986. What room are you in."

Aang sighed internally. He wasn't close to the two girls, "I'm 947."

"Oh. That's too bad. Do you- uh…" Katara was wondering if she was being to forward to ask him for his schedule. She did like this guy. He was the one the stormy grey eyes.

Toph came to the rescue, "Can we compare our schedule with yours?"

"Sure!" Aang said happily, completely forgetting that he had three bending classes on his schedule. He handed it over to Katara who took out hers.

"Let's see. Cool! You're a water bender! So am I! Toph's an earth bender. I'll compare your schedule with hers afterwards. We have math, water bending, science, study period, geography, and history together!"

"That's great! What about Toph's schedule?"

Toph gave Katara her schedule. She couldn't read it because she was blind.

"You have math, science, earth bending, geography, and history together," Katara thought for a moment, "Wait. Why do you have water, fire, and earth bending on your schedule?"

Aang bit his lip and thought quickly for an answer. He didn't want her to know he was the avatar. It was too much for a first time meeting each other.

"I'm, uh, just doing a survey for this year. The staff wants to know how the bending classes are."

Katara was going to ask if he could actually bend, but she decided that he was already nervous and jumpy enough. She decided to just leave the topic behind.

"So, do you want to go to our dorms together?"

"Sure," Aang said looking through his planner he had just gotten. "Hey, our dorms are right across the hall from each other!" he said happily.

"Great," Katara said happily.

Once they got to the stairs, they looked down at their suitcases.

"Toph, a little help here," Katara said to the earth bender.

"You got it," Toph said as she cracked her knuckles. Soon, they were shooting up on a growing rock pillar. They stopped at the ninth floor, and walked down the hall to their rooms.

"Hey, Aang. You said 947, right? I think that's where Sokka's dorm is. Sokka's my brother by the way. Tell him to give me a call when you see him. Hey, why don't we all meet out here in an hour, after we freshen up. Then we can explore the campus and see where our classes are."

"Sounds great. Meet you guys out here in an hour," Aang said happily, as he inserted the key inside the door of room 947. _Here we go._


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3- Campus and Classes

Aang turned the key and opened his door. He looked inside and saw two bunk beds. They were stained a dark wood and there were three desks, slightly separated, stained the same color. There were three green bean bag chairs, and a flat screen television on one wall. There was a computer, sitting on top of each desks, and a boy, lying on the floor listening to music.

"Um, hi," Aang said as he closed the door. The boy on the floor looked up and turned off his music.

"Hey, I'm Sokka. You must be my other roommate. Zuko stays here too. He's our other roomie."

"Oh. Well, uh, hi Sokka. You must be Katara's sister. I met her when we were getting our planners. She said to tell you to call her. And in a little while we're going to walk around the campus and see where our classes are."

"Okay. Thanks um…." Sokka paused.

"Aang," Aang said as he started to unpack his suitcase. Seven shirts, two pairs of jeans, two pairs of shorts, a pair of pajamas, socks, flip-flops, and his toothbrush and things like that. Aang's uncle was not rich by any means. Aang was going to _International Si Wong Academy _off of a scholarship. He had gotten all of his clothes at thrift stores, and he found his suitcase abandoned on the street. His uncle had fixed the hem of some of the clothes, and now they fit Aang pretty well.

He folded his clothes and placed them into his dresser and went to "freshen up", as Katara had said. It was a very nice bathroom. Dark granite sinks, dark wood cabinets, and a rock shower. It felt like a fancy resort, Aang thought. He took a shower, combed his hair, which covered his arrow, and threw on his nicest outfit: a yellow tee-shirt with a pair of blue jean shorts.

He walked into the room, and saw another boy with a scar on his face.

"Aang, this is Zuko. Zuko, this is Aang," Sokka said nonchalantly.

"Hi, um Zuko. Hey Sokka, we should probably see if the girls are ready. It's already getting a little but dark."

"Alright. You ready Zuko?" Zuko nodded and they went outside. The girls were all ready for them. They were wearing the same things they were before, but their hair was wet, and it looked like they had taken a shower. There was another girl behind Toph and Katara. She had blonde hair and was wearing a blue shirt.

"Everyone, this is Carah. She's are roommate," Katara said, looking at the girl behind her. "Carah this is Zuko, Aang, and Sokka, my brother," she said pointing to everyone. Everyone said hi and she smiled.

"So, where should we go first?" Toph asked.

"Well, we all have some classes together. We have math, science, geography, and history together, so we should start by going to those classes," Katara said. As they walked out and made there way to the math room, they ran into Mai and Ty Lee.

"Hey, everyone!" Ty Lee said, all too cheery.

Zuko smiled and pulled Mai into a half hug.

"We're on our way to the math room. You guys want to come?" Sokka asked the girls.

"Sure!" Ty Lee said, excited.

"Whatever," Mai said still in Zuko's grasp.

When they got to the math room, they looked at how big the classroom was.

"Wow! How many people do you think they could fit in there?" Ty Lee said peering in through the window.

"At least fifty," Everyone turned around to see Haru.

"Haru!" Ty Lee said as she made her way into his arms.

"Hey, babe. What's up you guys?"

"Not much. Nothing Fun. The usual. No exciting happenings." Everyone said in a jumble of words.

"Cool. Yah, I didn't do much over the summer either."

"Haru, this is Aang and Carah," Katara said.

"Hey, what's up?" Haru asked cooly, but it was obvious he wasn't expecting an answer, and the newcomers just smiled.

-- -- --

After the group went around the campus and found out where all of their classes were, they realized it was getting late.

"We should head back," Katara said looking up at the moon. Our first day is tomorrow, and we should get some sleep." Everyone agreed and made their way back to dorms. Aang began to write in his journal. He always had it with him. He was always afraid that someone would think it was girly, but since both Sokka and Zuko had taken bottom bunks, Aang didn't have to worry about anyone catching him.

_Dear Journal,_

_Today was my first day at boarding school. So far, I really like, even though classes haven't even started yet. I met some nice girls, and my roommates seem to be nice. I kind of like this one girl named Katara. She's in the dorm across the hall, and her brother is in my dorm. She has really pretty blue eyes that look like pools of water, chocolate hair, and creamy skin. She's really nice too, and she's a water bender. I guess since I'm the Avatar I'm a water bender too! I have six of my classes with her. All of the ones except for earth and fire bending, but that was a given. I haven't told anyone I'm the avatar yet either. I want to keep it a secret for as long as I can. I realize that the word will get out sooner or later, but I think it best if I keep it a secret for now. Ugh! I can't sleep because Sokka is snoring to loud!_

_Aang_

Aang put his journal under his mattress and covered his head with his pillow. He was trying, and failing, to block out Sokka's loud snoring. Zuko had already fallen asleep. He was used to Sokka by now.

-- --

**In the girls' room**

The girl's room was just like the boy's room, except lighter. The three were going through their schedules, and packing for the next day.

"I can't believe I have art class! I'm blind! What am I supposed to do? Finger paint?!" Toph yelled.

"Toph, it's fine. Carah and I are in that class, and we can help you," Katara said happily.

"Still, some people can be real idiots some times."

"I completely agree Toph. After all, I live with Sokka," Katara said with a smirk.

"Ha! Yah, I think you won that argument Katara!" Toph laughed.

"Well, I guess we should get to bed now, huh?" Katara said, brushing out her long, chocolate hair.

"Yah. I'm getting pretty tired. I'm a morning person, not a night person. What about you guys?" Carah said, staring up at the ceiling.

"You do not want to see me in the morning," Toph said snickering.

"That's for sure," Katara added. "I'm pretty good with both, as long as it's not too late or too early. But, you're right, we should some sleep."

And with that, the three girls got in their beds. Toph on the bottom bunk, and Katara and Carah on the top.

"Ring, ring, ri-" The alarm clock was smashed into pieces from a rock that was pounded on it.

Everyone yawned and got out of bed. Katara was the first in the bathroom. She straightened out her hair, and put on her blue robes, because she had water bending today. _With Aang!_ She thought.

Next was Carah. She put on blue jeans and a pink tee-shirt. She wasn't a bender, so she didn't have to worry about robes. And last was Toph. She put her hair up into its usual bun and put on a pair of black skinny jeans and a green tee.

They walked outside just in time to run into the guys who were walking to the cafeteria.

"You guys want to come with us. We all have the same starting classes," Carah asked the boys.

They nodded as they went down to the cafeteria. Sokka got a massive breakfast, Aang barely got anything because they didn't have many vegetarian meals, and the rest got normal sized portions. When they all had full bellies, they started walking to their first class, eager to start their first day of high school.

Good? Bad? Review!! What do you guys think? Check out my other fan fic "Kataang Forever!!" Thanks, and REVIEW!! over and out


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4- First Day

"Ugh. That was torture!" Katara said to Aang.

"Y-yah. Who k-k-knew a math t-teacher could be s-so brutal," Aang sobbed. He was trying not to cry. Professor Zhao had taken a ruler to his hand. This happened outside. Zhao had wanted Aang to come outside with him because he thought Aang was texting, but really he was just twiddling his thumbs. No one knew about it except for Zhao and Aang, and Aang wanted to keep it that way. He didn't want to seem wimpy because he had a sore arm. But, it really hurt. Katara noticed Aang's whimpering and saw that he was holding his hand.

"Aang! What's wrong?" Katara said putting a hand to his shoulder.

"N-nothing," he said through muffled sobs.

"No, there is something. Let me see your hand."

"R-really Katara, I-I'm fine," he said keeping his hand to himself.

"Aang, I know something's up, and I'm not going to stop bugging you until you show me your hand," Katara said with a compassionate voice.

Aang shrugged, 'Just, d-don't tell an-anyone." He said as he showed her his hand. It was a large cut on the top of his hand. Blood was tricking out and the outer part was red. She gasped and covered her mouth.

"Z-Zhao thought I w-was te-texting and he h-hit me with his ru-ruler," Aang whispered hoarsely.

"Come on. Let's go back to my dorm. I have some band-aids we can use. We should also clean it so it won't get infected. Aang nodded as they walked to Hog Monkey Hall. When they were in Katara's dorm, she put some disinfectant on Aang's hand. He whimpered and winced at the stinging pain.

"Sorry," Katara said. She could see that Aang was holding back tears, but one escaped. Without knowing what she was doing, she wiped it away with her thumb. When she realized this, she pulled her hand away quickly as Aang muttered a "thanks." They both blushed.

"Ring!"

"That was the warning bell," Katara said as she put a band-aid, "We should get going."

Aang nodded and they both grabbed their backpacks. On their way there, Katara looked over to Aang.

"So, are you a water bender, or are you just observing this class?"

"Uh…. Yah. I'm a water bender. But, I've never tried before," He said looking down at his shoes.

"That's great! There were no other water benders at my school. Just earth benders, since I went to school in Omashu. I moved away from the south pole when I was young, because my father worked in with the government in the Earth Kingdom. How about you? Where do you live?"

"I live in a village outside of Ba Sing Se."

"Oh, that's nice. Where do your parents work?"

Aang looked down at his feet and stopped walking. Katara noticed this, and stopped along side of him. "My parents abandoned me when I was a baby. They left me to my neighbor. They just left a note on me that said: 'We don't want him. Do what you want with him.' My neighbor, Gyatso, is my only 'relative'. He's like my dad, and he raised me like his son. At least," he looked away from Katara, "someone wanted me."

Katara stood next to Aang, tears forming in her eyes. It was all so said. She wished she never brought it up. She hugged him, meaning to this time, and Aang almost jumped in shock. It was surprising, but Aang was somewhat happy. She pulled away.

"I'm sorry I brought it up."

"It's okay. You- didn't know," Aang said slowly as they began to walk again. They walked to the lake where the water bending class would be held.

"Ring!" That was the late bell. Every person who was late to class after this bell rung would have five minute trash duty during lunch.

"All right class. Everyone's eyes on me!"

Katara and Aang looked up and saw an older looking man, who was in shape but had a grey beard and hair.

"My name is Master Pakku. Now, I'll learn your names as we go through this year, but for now, we're not going to waste any time getting started. Now, look at my stance. I want everyone to be in this stance in ten seconds. Go!"

Katara and Aang looked at his stance as they took their place next to the shore. They quickly took their stances as Master Pakku came around to check.

"Excellent form young man," he said to Aang.

"Young lady, you almost have it, just move your right foot a little- there! Perfect." Katara and Aang smiled. Once he walked around and critiqued everyone's stance, he went back to his spot on the lake. He called it his "circle".

"Now everyone has the stance. So, we're going to start bending water. Watch me," he said as his hands moved lightly, letting his wrists do most of the work. Everyone looked at the water. It was a small wave moving back in forth- the direction that Master Pakku's wrists were moving. "Now, everyone try it. Remember, it's all in the wrists."

First Katara tried. She was obviously concentration, but her wrists were moving robotically, and the water just wobbled on the surface. Everyone else seemed to be having the same problem. Then Aang tried. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Then he opened his eyes and focused them on the water. His wrists began to move and the water followed immediately. Katara stopped looking at her wobbling water to look at Aang.

"Wow! How did you do that so quickly?!"

"I don't know," Aang stopped moving the water, "I just kind of….. did it."

Everyone was looking at Aang.

"Wow! Did you see that?"

"That kid already got it."

"That was amazing."

"It was just like Master Pakku!"

The words were all jumble together, and Aang blushed as the attention he was getting.

"You got that faster than any of my other students. Well done- um.."

"Aang," Katara said for him, knowing that he was a little bit nervous.

"Well done Aang. While everyone else is trying that move, I guess I'll show you the next one."

Katara smiled and turned to focus on her own water. But she couldn't but watch Master Pakku show Aang the next move.

"This is what we call streaming the water," Master Pakku said as he said as he took a stream of water and moved it around his body. Aang got the water out of the stream and followed what Pakku did exactly.

"Wow! That was wonderful!" Pakku said.

Aang blushed and looked over at Katara. Her water was still wobbling when he began to turn back to Pakku. Then he saw a small wave form, and it was being pushed back and forth.

"She got it," Aang said, looking at Katara.

"Good job-"

"Katara," Katara said, beaming.

"Katara," Master Pakku said, "wonderful water tribe name."

"Thanks," she said, blushing.

"Well, I'll have Aang teach you the next move. I need to go help some other students. It you two learn that when I get back, I'll teach you the last one," Master Pakku said as he walked away.

"So, this is streaming the water…"

--

Meanwhile…..

"Drop and give me twenty!"

Toph sighed and took a push-up stance on the floor. Her P.E. teacher, Yan Ra, had been pushing her and her classmates to the limit. At least she had Carah in this class with her.

"One, two, three, sigh," Toph said as she went down for her next push-up."

--

"All you need to do is get the water in a long, bubble shaped thing, and be able to move it around," Aang showed Katara.

Katara focused on the water. She was successful in getting the stream, but as soon as she started moving it towards herself, it collapsed.

"You almost had it. Just relax a little more," Aang said as Katara blushed.

She tried it again, this time successfully moving it around her body and back into the water.

"Great! You got it better than I did," Aang exclaimed.

"Thanks. But, that not true," she snickered.

"Do you two have it?" Master Pakku said from behind.

"Yah," Aang said quietly.

"Alright then, I'll show you the next move. Same stance, and this time we want to make a big wave, like this," and with that, Master Pakku brought his hands up and created a massive wave, which crashed onto more water creating smaller waves on the shore. A few kids yelled, "Hey, I got the water to move!" Pakku laughed and turned towards Katara. Her eyes narrowed and she gazed at the water. Her hands moved up, and the water moved up into a lump, and then crashed, a pitiful excuse for a "big wave."

"We'll try that again. I just want to see how Aang does real quick."

And with that, Aang focused on the water and brought his hands up. His giant waved crashed into the water and the bell rang.

"Excellent! I'll see you next class."

Katara's mouth was wide open. "Wow! And you've never tried water bending before?"

Aang shook his head. "You did really good too, you know."

"Thanks," and they walked to the cafeteria.

Sokka spotted the two walking to lunch.

"Hey guys! Wait up!" He yelled as he ran up to them. They seemed not to notice him, and Sokka was getting tired from sprinting to them. When he got close enough, he grasped Aang's hands tightly and pulled at him, trying to get him to slow down.

"Agh!" Aang cried. That was his bad hand.

"Sokka! What are doing?!" Katara yelled at her brother.

"Trying to get you guys to wait up for me. That's what," Sokka said angrily.

"Well, Aang has a bad cut on his hand," Katara said flicking her brother in the arm.

"Ow! Um, sorry about that Aang," Sokka said quietly.

"It's okay…"

After a coupled moments of silence Sokka erupted:

"I'm so glad its lunch! I'm starving! So, how was your first day, guys? Zhao sure is a butt head."

"Tell me about it," Aang muttered, rubbing his hand.

"Well, besides math, it's been pretty good. Aang's a really good water bender!"

Aang blushed. Soon they were at the cafeteria.

"What are you going to get Katara?" Aang asked as he grabbed a salad. Sokka already got his lunch and was eating it in a ferocious manner.

"I don't know. Probably a turtle duck sandwich," she said while picking up a bag of fire flakes.

Soon, they were sitting down with Sokka. After about five minutes their table was full with Toph, Zuko, Mai, Ty Lee, Haru, Carah, Suki, and of course, Katara, Aang and Sokka. After discussing their days, it seemed like, beside math class, everyone had a good day.

"Mai and I finished out homework during our free period. It was great! But, it would have been better if I hadn't run into Azula. She didn't say anything, just glared. She scares me, and she my own sister!" Zuko said as he stuffed his face. Everyone laughed at this.

"Well, Yan Ra, my P.E. teacher, is even worse than Zhao!" Toph said.

"Yah, he made us do like one hundred push-ups and we had to run two miles," Carah added.

Soon, the warning bell rang, and everyone started scrambling to get their things. They were all off to science class. When they got inside, they found at seating arrangement at the front of the classroom:

_Toph – PailoSokka – Zuko_

_Azula- Ty LeeSuki – Mai_

_Carah - HaruKatara- Aang_

_and some other random people……_

After everyone got into their specified seats, Aang couldn't help but think how lucky he was to sit next to Katara. Meanwhile, Toph wondered who Pailo was. But soon, she knew. He walked in the classroom and took his seat next to Toph. Toph couldn't see him, but she felt that he was somewhat muscular, and was in shape.

"Hi, I'm Pailo. You must be Toph," he said as he set his backpack down.

"Hey. Yah, I'm Toph. And I'll start out real quick with the fact that I'm blind. But, I'm an earth bender, so I can see with my feet."

"Wow! That's amazing. I'm an earth bender too, but I just see with my eyes," he said smiling.

"Ring!"

"I'm Professor Jeong Jeong. Your first project is described in the sheet of paper on your desk. There will be no fooling around in this class, as I trust you freshman are past that stage. The project is do next class, which is in two days. You will have one partner for any assignments that I give you. That will be the person sitting next to you. I'll be at my desk if you need me. Oh, and don't need me" he said as he walked to his desk.

Katara looked at Aang. "Friendly, real friendly." Aang shrugged and they looked at the paper. It read:

_Science Project 1:_

_Use your microscopes to find the difference between the two cells found in water: amoebas and euglenas. Create a poster about your findings. It must include digital pictures which you can take with your computer, and details descriptions about their characteristics, similarities, and differences. Look at page 507 in your text book if you have any questions. _

"Doesn't sound too hard," Aang said hopefully.

"Doesn't sound like it..." Katara said, preparing their microscope. She remembered the direction for preparing a microscope slide. Start with a clean slide, add the fluid you intend on looking at, and cover it with a cover slip. She did so, and put the slide under the microscope. After focusing on a moving amoeba she exclaimed "Ew!" as Aang took the picture on the computer.

After taking a few pictures of the water, the bell rang, and Aang parted with Katara for the first time that day. He caught up with Zuko, who was walking towards the fire bending rink.

"Hey, Aang. What's up?"

"Not much. You?"

"Nothing much. So, have you ever tried fire bending?"

"No. Have you?"

"Not really. My sister's a fire bender too, and when she first tried she burned herself a little bit. Ever since then, I've wanted to wait until I got a real teacher who can help. Although, I've got to say, it was pretty funny when Azula burned herself," Zuko said laughing. Aang snickered.

When they were in the rink, they looked around. There were only ten other people in the rink.

"Hello, Aang," said a kind voice. Aang turned around to see an old man, about the age of seventy.

"Um, hi. Who are you?" Aang asked, confused.

"I am master Roku. I am named after my grandfather, the past Avatar. Avatar Roku," he said calmly.

Aang suddenly knew why Master Roku knew who he was. Roku's grandfather was Aang's past life. Aang gulped.

"That's nice. But, I, uh, really need to go put my bag down," he said as he went over to the edge of the rink. Roku got the message. He realized Aang didn't want anyone to know he was the Avatar.

As they began their lesson, Zuko and Aang picked up on every move quickly. They were always the first ones to get it, followed by an angry Azula. But, Aang's thoughts were elsewhere. _Great, someone knows I'm the avatar. _ But soon, the bell rang, and all of the students were off to their dorms to start their homework. Their first day of school was over.

Good? Bad? Review!! I hope you guys liked it! Kritoshi Warrior, I totally understand what you're saying. I tried to tone done the shipping in this chapter, but I did sort of go ahead with kataang. Sorry…. Oh well. Read my other fan fic too- "Kataang Forever!!" REVIEW!! thanks. Over and out.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5- Injured Player

Aang was always an early riser. But, he didn't always like that fact. Sure, it was great on days where he had to wake up early in the morning to get to school, but on days that he could sleep in, he hated it. Everyone was still asleep, and he found that he had nothing to do. But today, he woke up to an alarm clock, and in ten minutes, both Sokka and Zuko were off to their fifth period class. Since they had their first four classes yesterday, it was technically their first period class of today. Aang decided to stop thinking about it. He was too confused. He decided to write in his journal until he thought Katara would be up. They had free period together.

_Dear Journal,_

_Yesterday was my first real day of high school. I had Zhao for math first period. He thought I was texting and brought a ruler to my hand. Katara helped my clean and bandage it. Then we had water bending and I think I did pretty good. I guess it come naturally to the avatar. I don't really know anything about it. I guess I could ask Master Roku about it. That reminds me, I have earth bending today, with Toph. I'm kind of nervous, because Gyatso said I would probably have trouble with it, being and air bender and all. The thought of anyone finding out that I'm the avatar makes me sick. Anyways, I should probably get ready for the day. My hand is starting to hurt from writing so much, and Katara should be ready soon._

_Aang_

Aang put his journal under his mattress, and climbed down the bunk. He put on a pair of baggy jeans and a green tee. He brushed out his hair a little bit, just to look presentable. He grabbed his backpack with all of the things he would need for the day, and he walked out the door. When he was in the hallway, he saw Katara was just opening her door.

"Hey, Aang! Is your hand feeling better?" she asked, smiling.

"Hi Katara. Yah, it's a little bit better," Aang said looking down at his wrapped hand. He looked back up and said, "So, what do you want to do for an hour?"

"Well, we could work on our science project, or maybe you could help me with that water bending wave?" she said biting her lip and blushing.

"Sounds good! We already have our pictures for the science project, so we can look up some info on the amoeba and euglena in the computer lab. Then we could go work on water bending if we have time," Aang said as he started walking to the stairs.

"So, how was your fourth period yesterday, Aang? You had fire bending, right? That must have been kind of boring, just sitting there and observing," Katara said as she caught up with him.

"It wasn't actually that bad," Katara loved the way he was always optimistic, "I got to do the forms with them, even, uh- if I c-couldn't fire bend." That was a lie, and Aang knew it. He didn't like lying, but it was better than Katara finding out he was the avatar. "How was yours?" he asked, trying to change the subject.

"I really like my art class. Aunt Wu is hilarious, but I don't think Toph much enjoyed it, since she can't see like that. She talked to the office, and they said they were sorry for the inconvenience, but there was nothing they could do to change her class. Toph almost threw a rock at them," Katara laughed and Aang followed suit. "So, what class do you have next?"

"I have earth bending," he thought a minute, "with Toph. What do you have?"

"Swimming with Kanna. I think she's one of our family friends," Katara said, taking a seat in a chair. They were the computer lab.

"Oh, I have Bumi. That's funny you're taking swimming. You could probably use water bending to help you!" he said grinning. Katara laughed and pulled out the science poster.

"So, we need to look up the two types of organisms. Do you have good handwriting?" Katara asked, turning on the computer.

"Not really, but I'm pretty good at researching," Aang replied.

"Okay then. You can research the organisms, and I'll write down the information," Katara said as she logged herself on.

After forty-five minutes, their science project was done.

"Glad that's over with," Aang said relaxing in his chair.

"Yah, me too. So, do you want to go down to the lake?" Katara said eagerly.

"Sure!" Aang said picking up his backpack.

When they got to the lake, the two got in their stances.

"So, just pretend you're letting all your anger out, and then let it go," Aang said, showing her the wave.

"But, I'm not angry," Katara replied, relaxing from her stance.

"Um, then- uh…"

But, before Aang could think of something else, Katara's hands were in the air, as well as the water. And then it crashed into a wave.

"You got it!" Aang said loudly.

"Well, I guess we should start heading to our classes then, huh? Thanks Aang," Katara said as she picked up her bag.

"No problem. Um, I guess I'll see you at lunch then?" Aang said as he blushed.

"Sounds good! Bye!" And they went their separate ways.

Aang saw Toph going to the rock garden where their class would be held.

"Toph wait up!"

As Aang caught up, he could see that Toph was talking to another boy.

"Oh, hey Aang! This is Pailo. He's an earth bender too. He's in most of our classes," she said as Aang smiled.

"Ring!"

"That's the warning bell. We better hurry up," Aang said as they started walking at a quick pace.

"Don't worry Twinkle Toes. We'll be there soon enough," Toph said smirking.

"Twinkle toes?" Aang and Pailo said together.

"Well, he makes barely any vibrations. I barely know he's there!" Toph said as they all entered the rock garden.

"Ring!"

"Welcome class. Hehehe, snort! My name's Bumi. Everyone take your stances now! Wait… had anyone here ever tried earth bending?"

Toph was the only one to raise her hand. Aang knew she was actually a very experienced bender.

"Now, young lady, where did you learn it from?" Bumi asked in his cackling, high-pitched voice.

"Badgermoles They live in the caves just outside Omashu," Toph said dryly.

"Omashu, huh? I love that city. It's where I grew up. Anyway, take your stance like, now," everyone copied Bumi's stance. "Now, everyone on the right row should be facing their partner in the left row.

Aang was in the left row, and he was facing Haru.

"The person in the right row will start with the rock. The drill we will be working on today is very simple. The person in the rock will stomp on the ground, and if done properly, the rock will bounce into the air. When it is in the air, you should punch through it and hit it towards your partner. Your partner should then defend himself by putting up a firm hand." As he went through the steps, Bumi showed his students the form. "Begin!"

With that, Haru stomped on the ground and the rock flew into the air. He punched through it, and before Aang knew what was going on, he felt the rock hit him hard in the stomach. He was thrown backwards as he another tree, piercing the outside of his left leg. He yelped, and then drifted into unconsciousness.

"Oh my gosh!" Haru said as he ran over to Aang. "Aang, Aang?!"

The next one over was Toph. She felt the whole thing. Then Bumi came over.

"Poor boy. I'll take him to the nurse's office. Students, continue the drill!" and Bumi walked off carrying Aang to the nurse's office.

--

"Finally lunch! I'm starving! My swordsmanship class was really weird. But, I like Master Piandao. He teaches the geography class too. We worked on wooden swords and we started painting our signature!" Sokka said as he grabbed his massive lunch.

"Hey, does anyone know where Aang is?" Katara asked, "He told me he'd be here for lunch."

"Sorry, Sugar Queen, but Aang got hurt pretty badly, and got knocked unconscious during earth bending class. He'll probably be out of it for a little while."

"That's terrible! I'll go bring him some lunch," she said as she got up and picked up her bag. She ran over to the lunch line and got him a meatless sandwich and some chips. She walked over to the nurse's office.

"Can I see Aang? I brought his lunch with me," Katara asked the nurse who was sitting in her desk.

"Certainly dear. He should be awake right now," she said as she continued working on her papers.

"Aang? How you doing?" Katara asked sitting down next to the bed he was resting on.

"Okay, I-I guess. They said I sprained-" he started coughing loudly, so Katara brought him some water. "Thanks. I sprained my left ankle, and I ruptured a small blood vessel, but nothing serious there. But, I-I cracked my rib a little bit. That's all though," he said as he yawned.

"That's horrible! So, when will be back on your feet?"

"Well, I'll be in a wheelchair until my rib gets better. Then I'll be on crutches for a while," he winced in pain. "I'll be bandage free in two months."

Katara gasped, "Really? That long?"

Aang smiled a little bit. "Yah, I guess I'll just watch water bending from the sidelines."

"Well, class starts soon. I'll bring your homework to you after geography and history class. Will you be in your dorm or here after school today?"

"I'll be in my dorm, I think. Thanks, Katara," he said.

"Oh, and here's your lunch," she said as she handed him his lunch and ran out the door.

He whispered a "thanks", but she didn't hear him.

--

Mai and Zuko were behind the gym where no one could see them.

"How have you been?" he said pulling her tight to himself.

"Okay I guess," she was cut off by her lips being pressed against his. They stayed like that until they needed air, and they separated.

"Better, now?" he said with a smirk.

"Perfect," she replied.

--

Everyone filed into the geography room. The rows were set up alphabetical order.

_AangAzula _

_KataraMai_

_PailoSokka_

_SukiToph_

_Ty LeeZuko_

"Wow, this class is tiny!" Katara said as she took her seat next to Mai.

"Yah. I hate this alphabetical order thing too," Mai said nonchalantly.

"Ring!"

"Hello class," Master Piandao said from the front of the room.

Sokka waved recklessly, "Hi Master Piandao!"

"Hello, Sokka. It's nice to see you so…. soon," Piandao said, faintly smiling.

"Now, I'm sure you're all familiar with where the four nations are, but let's take a look at how it used to look…." And the lesson continued on and one, and on.

"Ring!"

_Finally_, everyone thought to themselves.

When they all got out of the classroom, they started looking for their history class. They were greeted with a smiling old man.

"Hello, everyone. Welcome, welcome! You may pick your seats," he said as everyone smiled. This was the first class where they got to pick their seats. Katara was one of the last people to walk in. There was no seat next to someone for her, and she was happy. This way, she would have an excuse to sit next to Aang. Everyone had found their "friend." Azula and Jet, Sokka and Suki, Toph and Pailo, Carah and some really hot guy, Zuko and Mai, Ty Lee and Haru, and some other random people.

"Ring!"

"Hello and welcome to history 101. My name is Iroh, and I will be your history teacher for the next four years," he said smiling. "We will begin with the history of bending. We have many groups of people, who had tamed animals. The fire benders learned from the dragons, the earth benders learned from badger moles, and the water benders learned from the moon. Air benders, who are sadly extinct, learned from sky bison. Any questions so far?"

Katara raised her hand.

"Yes. Young lady in the back," Iroh said, referring to Katara.

"Well, how did the air benders become extinct?"

"There are many theories, however we believe that they were massacred by the fire nation long ago. They would have conquered the world, but the Firelord was assassinated by one of his councilmen. But, that was four hundred years ago. In our later units, we will learn more about them."

Pailo's hand went up.

"Iroh, the last avatar, Fire bender Roku, died fourteen years ago. The next avatar in the cycle is an air bender, but if all the air benders are extinct, then who's the next avatar?"

"That is an excellent question, however, as of now, no one knows the answer. However, all babies were tested by the toy method fourteen years ago. The baby that chose the correct toys, symbolizing air, water, earth, and fire, will be the next avatar. But we will not know for another two years."

"Ring!" and the class was over.

Everyone filed out of the classroom and took a deep breath. Katara ventured back to her room and put her bag down. She found Aang's homework and walked over to Aang's dorm. She knocked on the door, and heard a faint "come in."

She came in to see that Sokka had traded places with Aang, so that Aang was on the lower bunk.

"How you holding up?" she asked.

"Okay. Thanks for bringing my homework. The lunch was great too," he said as she walked over to him. She handed him his homework. We didn't talk about anything that important in geography, and in history we learned about bending and the avatar and stuff. It's really interesting. What do you think happened to the avatar?"

Aang twiddled his thumbs under his bed sheet, "Uh, I-I don't really know. I just know that the air benders were killed," he said quietly.

"Yah, I don't really know either. Well, it looks like you need some rest. Are you coming to class tomorrow?"

"I think I might. In my wheelchair of course," he said quickly.

"Alright. Well, I'll see you tomorrow," and she left.

Aang reached down under his mattress for his journal. He gasped. He completely forgot that he was in the bottom bunk. He reached up and slid his fingers in between the mattresses. His fingers bumped into something hard, as he pulled it down. He winced and grabbed his side. After the pain subsided, he opened his journal and began writing.

_Dear Journal,_

_Today I got hurt badly and I'll be in a wheelchair and then on crutched for a while. Anyways, I'm really nervous about people finding out I'm the avatar. They were talking about it in history class today. Gyatso told me I was the avatar when I turned twelve. He knew he wasn't supposed to until I turned sixteen, but at school, there were a few incidents where I subconsciously bended. He told me I was the avatar, and needed to try to stop using my bending in public places. At least until I got control of them. I guess I'm the last air bender, the last air nomad. My uncle told me the spirits knew they needed to have an air bender avatar to restore balance, and they chose me. I don't know why, though. I don't want to be the avatar._

_Aang_

Aang reached under him to put it in between the mattresses, but found that there was only one. So he decided to put it under the bed, not knowing that Sokka's teddy bear was also under there. Aang hit the pillow, and fell asleep. 

Good? Bad? Review!! hope you liked it! REVIEW!! did you see the shipping in history class? It was pretty obvious! Anyways, read my story "Kataang Forever!!" and REVIEW!! thanks. Over and out.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6- Finding Out

Sokka looked around the room. One day had past since Aang's injury, and Sokka had just gotten back from his studying with Suki. They had free period together. Now he was in his bedroom. This was his only time to get his most valuable and hidden possession: his teddy bear. It lay hidden under his bed. He took a quick look outside his door to make sure no one was coming, and ran over to his bunk. He bent down and started feeling around for his teddy bear. Instead of feeling something soft and fuzzy, his hand instead ran into something hard. He pulled it out to find a blank, yellow cover. He looked over at the clock. It would be twenty minutes until the bell rings. He wrinkled his nose, and opened his book to the first page. It read "Aang's Journal". Sokka's mind became overwhelmed with curiosity. He started flipping through the pages.

_Today was my first day of middle school. It was awful……_blah blah blah

_It's finally eighth grade. I just learned I got accepted into my high……._blah blah blah

_Ugh! I can't sleep because Sokka is snoring to loud! …….. _Hey! I don't snore that loud. He looked to the top of that entry.

_She's really nice too, and she's a water bender…….. _Must be talking about Katara. He continued….

_I guess since I'm the Avatar I'm a water bender too! I have six of my classes with her. All of the ones except for earth and fire bending, but that was a given. I haven't told anyone I'm the avatar yet either. _

Wait, what! Avatar?! Aang? No way, Aang couldn't be the avatar!

_I want to keep it a secret for as long as I can…… _Sokka thought. He really wanted to tell everyone that Aang was the avatar, but Aang didn't want anyone to know. Sokka rubbed his chin. He decided that he'd talk to Aang about it, but not directly otherwise Aang might think he read his journal.

Sokka closed the journal as he heard the bell ring. A few minutes later he saw Aang in his wheelchair being pushed in by Zuko.

"Thanks for wheeling me Zuko," Aang said as they entered their room.

"No prob. Hey, Sokka!" 

"Hey, guys. What's up?" Sokka said as he hid his teddy bear, Foo Foo Cuddily Poops, under his sheets.

"Not much," they said at the same time.

Just then, the intercom boomed: "This is a quick reminder that our first dance will be held next Friday. This is 'Golden Dragon Egg Dance,' for Sophomores and Freshman only. The 'Golden Dragon Dance' will be held the day after, on Saturday, and is for Juniors and Seniors. That is all."

Aang sighed and looked down at his wheelchair. _Who would want to take a guy in a wheelchair to the dance? _he thought to himself. 

Sokka looked out the window. _I wonder if Suki will go with me, _he thought. And Zuko realized the two moping and thought, _I'm so lucky I already have a girlfriend!_

"Knock, knock!" The boys jumped up at the sound of the knocking. Zuko opened the door to see Katara, Carah, and Toph. 

"Hey, guys! We were just wondering if you want to go eat dinner with us," Carah said. As she said this, they noticed her arm was wrapped around someone else's. It was that really hot guy from history class. "Oh, and this is my boyfriend, Lee," Carah added, seeing that everyone was looking at him.

"Hey," he said it with so much style and grace, Carah smiled. He had shaggy blonde hair, just like her, and his arm muscles were of good size. He had a sparkling smile and eyes made of rubies. He just wasn't Katara's type. Besides, she had more interest in a certain stormy-grey eyed boy. 

Aang looked down, "Um, sorry, I can't go. To much, uh- homework," he said.

Zuko looked at him, "Do you want us to stay, Aang?"

"No, no. You guys go ahead," he responded quickly. 

"Well, I guess Sokka and I can go then," Zuko told the girls, and Lee.

"Okay. I'll come by at 9:30 tomorrow to pick you up, Aang," Katara said as they started walking off.

"Thanks!" he called, and the door shut. Aang really didn't have that much homework. He was just confused, and slightly depressed. He found his journal was not where he had left it. But, he grabbed it from where it was and started writing.

_Dear Journal,_

_I have a feeling someone was snooping in you today, because you wasn't where I left you. I hope no one found out I'm the avatar. That would be awful. The first dance is coming up, but I'm stuck in this stupid wheelchair. I really want to go, but no girl would say yes to a boy in a wheelchair, because then it wouldn't be a 'dance'. It would be a 'sit around with my handicapped date and talk while other people stare at us'. I really want to ask Katara, but she has guys drooling over her, so she could easily get a date with anyone, even a sophomore. I don't even know if I should ask her. If I do, she'll say no because she wouldn't be able to dance with me. But, if I don't ask, then she won't know that a like her, and she'll definitely go out with another guy. I'm so confused._

_Aang_

Aang put his journal down, in the corner of his bed, so that it was harder to see. Then he finished his homework, and fell asleep.

He woke up an hour later to hear the door unlock and he then heard Sokka laugh hysterically.

"Hey guys. How was dinner?" Aang asked resting his head on his pillow.

"Pretty good. You should have been there, though," Sokka said through giggle fits.

Aang smiled and fell asleep.

-- -- --

Katara looked around the room. Everyone was asleep. She pulled out her diary from under her pillow and started writing.

_Dear Diary,_

_Today was pretty good. Not much happened. But, there is an upcoming dance, and I really hope Aang asks me. But, he's in a wheelchair right now so he won't be able to dance. I don't really care though. I'd be fine just talking with him, or maybe just going on a private date. That sounds like fun, and romantic. But, Aang's probably nervous about asking anyone. I hope he likes me! But, he is probably nervous…. Maybe I'll drop a few hints to tell him that I like him. This is so exciting!_

_Katara_

Katara placed it back under her pillow, and went to bed. 

_--_

_Good? Bad? Review!! So, I know it was kind of short, but I was pressed on time, so yah. Hope you liked it! REVIEW!! Over and out._


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7- Dropping Hints and nature roll

Aang woke up at six in the morning with a throbbing headache. He groaned softly. He would have tried to find a more comfortable position, but his rib and leg forbid any movements. He decided to try to get to sleep, but he couldn't. So, he laid there until the alarm clock rang at eight thirty, and Zuko smashed it with his fist.

"All ready?" Sokka whined.

But, the two boys left after five minutes of changing clothes, and ventured down to the cafeteria. Aang put his hand up to his head and rubbed it, but it was no use. And soon, it was nine thirty. Katara knocked on the door, and Aang muttered a "Hey Katara." She walked in.

"Hey, Aang! Are you ready to go?" she asked kindly.

"Well, actually I have a really bad headache. You can go get breakfast without me," he replied.

"Okay," Katara said softly, and then she remembered her plan. "Well, how about I get breakfast for the two of us, and bring it up here?"

"Sure. Thanks Katara," Aang said as she walked out of the room.

Minutes later, she came back in with a heaping plate of pancakes and eggs, and some orange juice. She pulled up a chair next to his bed.

"So, I'm guessing you want pancakes, eggs, and orange juice, right?" she asked as she set up a folding table for Aang.

"That would be great," he replied numbly. He began eating, but hair fell in his face. Katara put a gentle hand on his face, and moved his hair behind his ear. The heat both rushed to their faces, and their cheeks became an intense red.

"Um, thanks," Aang said shyly.

Katara just stuffed her mouth full of egg and looked out the window.

"Beautiful, um day, huh?" he said twiddling her thumb, nervously. Aang could see this. He wanted Katara to know that he like her. He made a bold move and placed his hand over hers. They both looked up and stared at each other, until Aang yelled out in pain. He looked at his left leg, which was propped up on a pillow. Sokka's teddy bear had fallen on it. The both laughed and finished eating breakfast.

"Ring!"

"We should get going. We only have fifteen minutes to get to class," Katara said as she removed the table and her chair. She wheeled Aang's wheelchair over to his bed and helped him get out of bed. The covers slipped off, and Aang gasped when he realized he had forgotten to change. He was wearing pajama bottoms, with no top. Katara covered her mouth to avoid laughing hysterically, but she also couldn't look away from him. He looked _amazing_ without his shirt on.

"It's alright Aang. I'll go get you one of your shirts," Katara said as she looked at Aang who looked like he was going to explode in embarrassment. She came back with a brown t-shirt. He thanked her and put it on as he wheeled himself towards the bathroom.

"I'll be right out," he said.

He came out all ready to go, and they headed off to their first class.

-- -- --

Meanwhile, right after the bell rings……

Toph and Pailo were walking to their earth bending class. Pailo stopped walking and turned to Toph.

"Hey Toph? Do you, uh, want to- um, gotothedancewithme?" he said the last part very fast.

Toph smiled, "I'd love to, Pailo!"

He smiled and sighed in relief. She gave him an elbow in the arm.

"Just don't get all mushy," she smirked.

-- -- --

After earth bending class………..

Everyone is taking their seats in geography class. Aang sat next to Azula. When she got in and took her seat, she scowled at Aang.

"Move over, peasant! Your little chair thing is taking up my beauty space!" she said while fixing her lip stick. Aang just rolled his eyes and tried to move over some. But, when he heard a "What the-?" he looked at Azula who had a menacing look on her face. He turned around to see Mai and Katara high-fiving each other. Mai had spit balled Azula in the back on the neck. Aang smiled and the bell rang. Piandao walked in and said:

"All right everyone. So, last class we learned how to map. So, today we're going to split up and go hiking on a trail. I will give you a map of the mountain, and you will be graded on how well you mark your specific trail. There will be five groups of two, and each group will receive a first aid packet and a walkie talkie. You may pick your groups. Go!"

Everyone scattered into their groups: Aang and Katara, Toph and Pailo, Zuko and Mai, Sokka and Suki, and Ty Lee and Azula. Paindao handed everyone a map, and one person from each group a walkie talkie and a first aid bag.

"Meet in the courtyard in one hour and fifteen minutes. If you're not here, I will call your walkie talkie three times. If you don't answer at all, I will send out a small search team. Okay, now. On your mark, get set, hike!" And everyone went their separate route. Mai and Zuko went to the trail behind the fire bending rink. Their fingers intertwined as they started walking. After five minutes, they sat down and began to map. When they finished, they began to get up. Zuko then spontaneously decide to kiss Mai. When they parted, he asked with a smirk:

"You, me, dance?"

She rolled her eyes and smiled, "Duh, you dimwit!" And they were on their way.

Meanwhile…..

Katara and Aang had chosen the only paved path. A half an hour had gone by fine. They had mapped their trail, and were getting ready to head back. All of a sudden, there was a rustling in the bushes.

"Did you hear that?" Aang said, worried.

"I think your headache's messing with you. I didn't hear a thing," Katara said as she continued walking. Then, out of a bush, came a roaring platypus bear. Katara froze, no water in sight. The platypus bear took a giant step forward and roared. It raised up his arm preparing to swipe. Aang couldn't do anything in his wheelchair. Out of instinct he let out a hand and air blasted the platypus bear into the tree. Katara stared at Aang, mouth wide open.

"Aang? What did do just do?" she breathed.

"I, uh, we- um, should probably be heading back. I- just, ow- my leg hurts. Let's get back," he smiled sheepishly.

"Aang? What's going on?"

"I- um, just….. air bended that platypus bear away……" he said, looking down at his feet.

Katara stared at him, her eyes burning a hole through his head.

"It all makes sense. Taking the three bending courses…. And now you can air bend. Aang, you're the avatar, aren't you?" Katara said walking towards Aang.

Aang bit his lip so hard it almost bled. "Please, just don't tell anyone," he said sadly.

"But, Aang, this is great. You're the avatar. It's just, why- why didn't you tell me?"

"Because….. I never wanted to be the avatar," he replied solemnly.

"Well, I'll give you a month. One month to tell your friends that you're the avatar. Deal?" she asked with a smile.

Aang sighed, "I guess."

They began to walk (and wheel) back.

"Oh, and thanks again for saving my life," she giggled. "I guess I kind of forgot about it." She hugged him. Aang's eyes widened. He _really _wanted to. He took a deep breath.

"Katara? Will- you, I, dance- please, yes- it's just I like- Golden Dragon…." He trailed off mumbling to himself. "will go, uh, go to the d-dance with, high pitched voice me?"

"Oh, Aang! I'd love to. But, um, how will we dance?" She said looking down at his wheelchair.

Aang looked away. "I knew it was as stupid idea… you should just go with someone else. I- I don't want to force you to go with someone who can't dance," he said sadly.

"No, Aang. I don't want to go with anyone else," she said putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Really? Well, then maybe we could watch a movie or something. You know, like a- a date?" he asked hopefully.

"Sounds wonderful!" she exclaimed.

They both smiled as they met the others at camp.

Good? Bad? Review!! The words out! Aang's the avatar! Katara had a date! Toph has a date! Zuko has a date! Will Sokka get a date? Stay tuned to find out! (I sound like a tv commercial thing ) REVIEW!! thanks. Over and out.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8- Dances and Dates

Tomorrow would be the day of the dance. Today was Thursday, and school had just gotten out. Aang rolled himself into his room and got out his journal.

_Dear Journal,_

_Tomorrow's the day of the dance. But, Katara and I aren't going. We're having a date. If the date goes well, I think I might ask her to go out with me. I think I'm falling in love._

_Aang_

_P.S. Katara found out I 'm the avatar, but I'll talk more about that later._

Aang closed his journal and began to do his homework.

--

Katara had just gotten back from art class with Toph and Carah. She carried her massive clay structure she had made, and set it on her desk. It was a fountain, overflowing with water, and cascading into a pond. Then, the other two girls walked in with their sculptures. Toph made a miniature Omashu, and Carah made a lantern with a flame. She was going to give it to Lee.

"Pailo asked me to the dance!" Toph exclaimed as she collapsed on her bed.

"That's great! I'm going with Lee. Who are you going with Katara?" Carah asked.

"I'm not going to the dance," no one could see Katara's smile.

"Don't feel bad. I'm sure someone will ask you to the next dance," Carah said sympathetically.

"Oh, it's not that. Aang asked me to go to the dance. But, since he can't dance, we decided to go on a date instead," Katara said cheerfully.

"Perfect! I knew you guys liked each other," Toph said smugly.

Carah just smiled and gave Katara a hug. At night, Katara began to write in her diary.

_Dear Diary,_

_Tomorrow is my date with Aang. I'm so excited. I wonder what I'm going to wear. I don't want to be too formal, since it's just a first date. Maybe a skirt and a tank top or something. I don't know._

_Katara_

Katara put her diary away, and fell asleep.

--

The whole freshman and sophomore class was a buzz. The day seemed to go by so slowly, but when it was over, everyone was in a rush to get back to their dorms to get ready. Katara ran into her room and started looking for a short, but not too short, skirt. Something about four inches above the knee, and wouldn't hug her thighs. Once she found a light blue, flowing shirt, she looked for a tank top. She found a darker blue one with a small amount of lace on the fringe. Then, she got her sweater which was white, and fitted perfectly around her. Then she sat down in front of her mirror, and started fixing her make-up. She but light blue eye shadow over her eyes, and some lip gloss so her lips were just a little brighter. Then she picked out her shoes. She chose some sparkling silver flip flops. She looked at her reflection and smiled.

Meanwhile, Aang was trying to make himself look nice. He pulled out a nice pair of jeans and threw them on. Then, he put a white under shirt on, which was followed by a nice button up shirt. He fixed his hair and pulled out his wallet. He looked at himself in the mirror, and let out a long breath. He straightened up in his wheelchair, and rolled out the door. He went across the hall and knocked on Katara's door. She opened the door. Aang's mouth almost hit the floor.

"Y-you look… nice," he said. That was all he could get out. She really looked beautiful.

"Not too shabby yourself," she replied with a smile.

" Well, we should probably get going," Aang said, putting his hands on his wheels to start wheeling. Katara began to walk, and they took the elevator down to the main floor. They walked to the café and ordered a simple, yet delicious dinner. They talked about everything from cars to classes to Omashu and everything in between. It had been a perfect dinner.

"So, um, Katara?" Will, you- uh, would you like to be, my, um…. girlfriend?" he had said it. And even if she rejected, at least he had gotten it out.

"Yes, yes! I'd love to," Katara said giddily.

"Really?! That's great!" Aang replied, obviously happy. Then Katara smiled seductively.

"You know, the dance just started, and my room is empty. Would you like to continue out date there?" she asked.

"Sure!" Aang said as he tipped the waiter. They got back onto the elevator, and went into Katara's dorm. They sat on the bed that Toph wasn't using. They resumed their conversation. Eventually, Katara rested her head on Aang's shoulder, and he instinctively wrapped his arm around her waist. Then, they stopped talking and looked at each other. Slowly, their heads met, and their lips locked. They enjoyed a long kiss, not a passionate one. Their relationship was young, and they didn't feel as they were ready for that. That parted and smiled, scooting closer together.

--

At the dance, the music was blaring. Toph could barely see anything because the vibrations from the speakers were too powerful. She and Pailo had stuck together the whole dance, so it made it fun for both of them. Mai and Zuko were also hitting it off with dancing close to each other. Sokka just kept looking over at Suki. Finally, he drew in a deep breath, and walked over to her.

"Hey, uh, Suki? You wanna dance? With… me?" he asked. Suki smiled, got up, and took Sokka's hand as they walked over to the dance floor. This was truly Sokka's favorite night so far.

Good? Bad? Review!! So, got some Sukka in there. Yanna, got your kissing scene. No, it was not lemony at all. Didn't want it to be. Allicat, I'm really sorry it underlined in chpt. 6. I didn't do it, but the computer just kind of added it. Sorry! Anyways, hope you liked! REVIEW!! over and out.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9- Surgery

Aang and Katara were moving towards the nurse's office for his weekly check up. Their fingers were intertwined. They walked up to the lady at the desk. She smiled and pointed to a room where Aang was to go. The couple walked in and was greeted by a bone doctor. He placed the x-rays on a screen, and motioned for both of them to sit down.

"So, Aang, how are you doing?" He asked sitting down at his desk.

"Pretty good," he answered smiling.

"Good, good. Well, these x-rays appear as very pleasing for your rib. She minor fracture appears almost completely healed. Let me just do the touch test and we'll see," he said as he moved his chair next to Aang. Aang lifted his shirt partially and blushed when he remembered Katara. They had been dating for two weeks now. They were one month into school. Aang's peaceful day dream was interrupted when he felt cold hands moving over his abdomen towards his fractured rib. When his fingers put an ounce of pressure on it, Aang but his lip and winced.

"Well, it feels fine, but you seem to be in a minor amount of pain. So, you'll still have bandage on it, but I am happy to say that you are now only on crutches," he said happily.

"Really? That's great!" Aang exclaimed.

Katara squeezed his hand and smiled. She was happy for him.

"Now, let's check out that foot," the doctor said, beginning to lean over. "So, Aang, as you know you ruptured a minor blood vessel, correct?" he asked. Aang nodded. "Well, it's been in this brace for a little over three weeks. We have it wrapped so it won't bleed or anything, but it doesn't show any signs of improvement. I-I don't really know any other way this, Aang, but your leg needs surgery. Although it is a minor blood vessel in the body, it is very important to your foot. It is the main and vital oxygen resource to your ankle, down."

Aang's eyes widened and his mouth dropped. "Surgery?" he whispered. Katara could feel his hand sweating.

"But, we need to discuss the side effects. The surgery is, I suppose, up to you. But, if we don't perform the surgery, then you'll lose all feeling and movement in your foot. Eventually, we'll have to amputate it. But, if we perform surgery, there is an eighty percent chance you'll regain full movement of your foot, after physical therapy of course. But, there are side effects from the procedure. First, there is a twenty percent chance that the surgery will…. be in vain. It will most likely work, however. After the surgery you will be in a great deal of pain, but I believe it will be worth it, because you will hopefully regain total foot movement," he doctor sighed. "Would you like to perform the surgery?"

Aang didn't have to think that long. He knew his chances were much higher if he did the surgery. He nodded his head and the doctor smiled.

"Excellent. Aang, you've made the right choice. Now, would you like to hear what we'll being doing during the surgery?" Aang bit his lip, but nodded. He didn't really want to know, but it was a good idea to, considering it was his foot.

"Well, first we need to locate your blood vessel. Then it's very simple. We just sew together the separated parts of the vessel," he said grimly. Aang turned pale. "The pain after the surgery will come when the anesthesia wears off. It will be a sharp pain, but will be in a small area, right here," he pointed to his mid-calf. "Well, I'll be ready to perform it tomorrow. Tomorrow's Saturday, so we can start at nine. Be here at quarter to nine. It will only last about two hours."

"Can I come, too?" Katara asked, knowing that Aang would feel safer if she were there.

"Well, you can wait outside, of course. I don't think it will be a good idea if you're in here. A little to, um, scientifically gory," the doctor replied. "Well, I will see you two tomorrow. Bye," he said as they walked out the door. They dropped off Aang's wheelchair and got his crutches.

"Surgery," Aang said as his hand drifted to his forehead. It was rather hot.

"Aang, you don't look so good. Why don't we get you home and we can watch a movie or something?" Katara said, seeing that Aang was as white as a ghost.

"That sounds g-good," he managed to say.

They walked and limped over to the first floor of Hog Monkey Hall. Aang wanted to take the stairs up to ninth floor.

"Aang, you just got out of your wheelchair. We should take the elevator," Katara told him.

"I guess you're right," he said wandering towards the elevator. The elevator was off limits for everyone unless you were hurt, of helping the person who was hurt.

When they got up to the ninth floor, Aang opened his room. No one would be back until eight, because they had signed up to volunteer in the blood drive. Aang and Katara wanted to help, but they had to go to Aang's doctor appointment.

Katara helped Aang onto his bed she sat down next to him. He collapsed into her arms and whimpered. His head was on her arms, which were on her thighs. She played with his hair and wiped away a single tear that had just escaped his eye.

"It's alright Aang. You'll have the surgery and your foot will have mobility. And I'll be right there to help you. So will Sokka and Toph and Zuko and everyone else. It'll be okay," Katara said.

"I-I know, but, what if my foot doesn't, doesn't get better?"

"It will get better Aang." Aang sighed and fell asleep in Katara's arms.

--

Later that night, Aang pulled out a piece of paper to right Gyatso.

_Dear Gyatso,_

_Sorry I haven't written in a while. School's going great, but three weeks ago I got hurt. I fractured a rib, which is now healed, sprained my ankle, and ruptured a blood vessel in my calf. Tomorrow, I'll have surgery to save my foot. I have an eighty percent chance that my foot will make it. But, if I don't have the surgery, I'll lose my foot for sure. I just found out today and I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. Things have been really busy. I have a girlfriend, Katara. She's amazing. She's really nice, and pretty, and just…. perfect. She's a water bender too. She knows I'm the avatar, but I think she's the only one that knows. I have to tell everyone else soon, or they think I'm hiding something. But, I think someone in my dorm read my journal, so they might know about my being the avatar, too. But, I don't really know, so I'm not mad about it. I'm really nervous about my surgery. Well, better get some sleep._

_Sincerely,_

_Aang_

Aang put his letter in an envelope, and sent it down the letter shoot, which every dorm had. The letter would be taken by messenger hawk to Gyatso. Aang went back to his bed and fell asleep, not knowing but the next day would bring.

--

Aang woke up and smiled as the sunlight drenched his face. Then he remembered that he had surgery, and frowned. Katara said that she would be in the hall at eight, so they could get some breakfast. It was seven. Aang decided to take a shower before the surgery. He probably wouldn't be able take one for a day or two after the surgery. He changed into a random pair of shorts and a tee-shirt. He hoped he wouldn't have to change into those nasty hospital gowns. He looked at the clock. It was five to eight. He got his crutches and walked outside. Katara was waiting. She smiled and they kissed for a second and started walking to the elevator. When they were at the ground floor, they walked to the cafeteria and got their breakfast. Aang's lips were trembling. Katara put her hand on his shaky hand, and looked him in the eyes.

"Aang, calm down," she said compassionately.

"I'm sorry, it's just that, I-I don't know what to expect," he said, looking down at his feet.

"Everything's going to be alright," she started getting up. "We should probably head to the nurses office."

Aang sighed and hopped up, Katara giving him support until he got his crutches. When they got to the office, the doctor was ready. The room looked like it had been turned into an operation room. There was breathing tubes, a metal bed, masks, gloves, and….. knives, much to Aang's dismay.

"Okay, Aang. You can lay down right here, and I'll going to give you some, uh, knock out gas. Then I'm going to sterilize your leg, and begin the procedure. Young lady, I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you to wait outside."

Katara nodded and went out of the room, after helping Aang onto the table. Aang took a deep breath, and then a clear mash went over his nose and mouth.

--

Aang woke up feeling dizzy and rather giddy. He felt something on his hand, and looked over to see Katara.

"Aang! You're awake!" she said she bent over to hug him.

"Hey Katara. How does the doctor think my leg is?"

"He said that he saved you're foot, and you have feeling in it. And, he said that with physical therapy, you'll have full control over it in a couple of months," her voice lowered. "Do you feel any pain in your leg?"

"Nope. I feel pretty good. Just a little dizzy," he said as he held his head. Katara put her hand on his arm.

"The doctor said that we should get you home before you feel any pain. But you'll have to use a wheelchair since you're dizzy," she said as she wheeled over the chair. Aang got situated in the chair, and Katara pushed it towards Hog Monkey Hall. Aang looked down at his leg. It was in a heavy white cast; much more thoroughly wrapped than before, when he just wearing a bandage and a brace for his now healed, sprained ankle.

"Did the doctor sat when I'll get this cast off?" Aang asked.

"He said it would be about a month," she said as they boarded the elevator. Aang sighed. Four more weeks on crutches.

Good? Bad? Review!! not too much romantic stuff…. Yet! Hope you liked it. Next chapter should be out tomorrow. REVIEW!! over and out.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10- The World According to Aang

This is a "day in the life" story. It follows Aang through one day after his surgery, and is written in his point of view…. Enjoy!

-- --

Katara rolled me into my room.

"Do you want me to stay?" she asked as she closed the door behind her.

"Only if you want to. I don't want you to waste your Sunday helping me. Unless, I mean, if you…. Want to," I replied.

"Of course I want to! I just want to make sure you're not tired or anything," she said, smiling as she sat down next to me. I grinned back.

I cupped her chin and turned her so she was facing me. We kissed, but then were interrupted by some noise coming from the hall. Five people came in and took their seats on the floor or on the beds. It was Toph, Zuko, Mai, Sokka, and Suki.

"Hey Tinkle Toes. How's your leg?" Toph asked, staring at no one in particular.

"It actually doesn't hurt. The doctor said it would hurt later. Right now I'm just kind of dizzy from the anesthesia," I said and put my head on Katara's shoulder, and she put her hand on my back. I smiled but the room started to spin a little.

"Aang, are you okay?" Suki asked.

"You don't look so good," Sokka added.

"Maybe you should lie down," Mai suggested.

"Aang, Aang?" Zuko waved his hand in front of mine.

"Uh, what? Sorry guys. I'm fine, just a little bit out of it, I guess," I said.

Katara gave me a worried look, and rubbed my back. I loved that girl.

"But, I should probably start my homework. Thanks for coming guys," I said as they started to walk out of the room.

"Feel better."

"See you tonight."

"Get well, Aang."

"Drink lots of water."

"Hope your leg gets better soon."

And with that, they all left, leaving just me and Katara.

"Aang, you really don't look well," she said.

"Really, it's just the medicine. I'll be fine," I said, pulling up my backpack.

"Well, I already finished all of homework, so I can help you," she said.

"Thanks. I don't have much. Just geography and history."

"Well, geography is just learning the nine regions of the Earth Kingdom. We need to know what and where they are, because we have a quiz on it. There's the Kyoshi Islands, Si Wong Desert, Si Wong Mountain Range, Ba Sing Se, Omashu, Gaoling, Serpent's Pass, Chameleon Bay, and…. the northern Air Temple. Aang, how can you be the avatar, when there are no more air benders left?"

I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath. "Well, Gyatso tells me that the spirits knew there had to be an air bender avatar, so the avatar spirit was reincarnated into me. I don't really know how…. Or why they chose me."

"Wow. So, is that why you're so naturally gifted at water bending?"

"I guess," I blushed. "But, you're just as good as me, and you're not the avatar."

She smiled and gave me a hug. I smiled back. We pulled out of our embrace and she ruffled my hair. Then she stopped and gaped.

"What? My dandruff isn't that bad is it?" I asked.

"N-no. Just, you have a blue line on your head," she whispered. Then her eyes widened. "Wait, that's an arrow. I mean, I knew you were an air bender, but…. I guess I never really thought about it. You're a _master _air bender, aren't you?" she asked. I nodded.

Soon my homework was done and it was nightfall.

"Do you want to go get dinner?" Katara asked.

"Sure! Let's go," I replied.

She got up and stood there waiting for me to get up. I swung my feet around and they landed inches from the floor. Then I hopped up, making the stupid mistake of putting too much pressure on my left leg.

"Ahh!" I said as I fell over. Katara caught me, my head on her knees. She was sitting on her shins and I was lying down on the floor.

"Aang," she whispered. But I didn't really notice. My leg was throbbing. She must have seen a pain expression on my face. She helped me up, and I used her shoulder as a support until I got my crutches.

"Your leg hurts now, doesn't it?" she asked, keeping one hand on mine.

"Yah," I muttered. It was embarrassing having your girlfriend helping you walk. Shouldn't it be the other way around? Shouldn't my hand be on hers? This surgery was throwing the natural order of things into wack.

"Do you want to go to the nurse's office to get some pain relief medication?" she asked, with a worried tone, and a worried expression on her face.

"No, I-I'm f-fine," I replied, obviously lying.

"I think you should, Aang. It's hard seeing you in this much pain," she added.

"Well, since you put it that way, I guess."

After we got dinner and my medication, we went our separate ways and fell asleep.

--

I woke up at four in the morning with a horrible feeling in my leg. It felt like someone had thrust a knife in my calf and kept sticking me with it and then pulling it out, over and over and over. Thank the spirits I had my free period with Katara this morning. I don't think I could stand math with Zhao. I just had to wait a while until I could go anywhere. After all, it would be a little bit strange to see a boy on crutches roaming the campus alone at four in the morning. Instead, I had to stay in bed, not being able to fall asleep.

I twisted and I turned for four and a half hours, when finally, the alarm clock went off. Zuko and Sokka got ready, and then left to eat breakfast. I hopped out of bed (carefully this time) and walked over to Katara's dorm. I hoped she was awake. I knocked and she answered, still in her pajamas. She must have seen my glazed eyes, because she rushed over to hug me, and helped me down on her bed.

"Leg?" she asked.

"Y-yah. I've been up since four. I-I couldn't sl-sleep," I answered shakily.

"Poor thing. You should lie down," she said. I complied. She lay down next to me, and I wrapped my arm around her waist. She rested her head on my shoulder and smiled. We stayed like that until it was time to get breakfast. She helped me get up, and we took the elevator down to the ground floor. We went over to the cafeteria and sat down with our food. My leg was still aching terribly, but I tried my best to conceal it. But, it was like she could see right through me. Katara put down her fork and put her hand on mine.

"It'll be okay. It should only hurt for a week. Then it'll be normal, and soon, you'll get the stupid cast off, and you'll be all better," she said.

"I know. Thanks, Katara."

Soon, we were off to our classes. I had earth bending. But, really it was just sitting down watching people doing their forms, while I was off sitting on the side, twiddling my thumbs. Yup, that was me. The mighty avatar sitting with a ruptured blood vessel, twiddling his thumbs while watching a catbird fly by.

But, my peaceful composure was interrupted by a powerful shock that erupted from my foot up my leg. It kept surging for a few minutes, as I tried my very best to keep from crying. Eventually, I went up to Bumi and told him about my foot. He said I could leave. I made my way back to my dorm, stumbling a few times on the way. Finally, I was on my bed. But, it didn't relieve the pain at all. I just laid there, slowly letting tears escape. I couldn't do anything. The tears kept rolling down my cheek, and the medication wouldn't help. My fingers dug into my mattress as if I were holding on for life itself. I bit the covers and my leg shook uncontrollably. I took deep breaths as I thought of Katara. It slowed my mind down a little bit.

Soon I heard the lunch time bell. My stomach growled. I was pretty hungry, but I dared not venture out of my dorm room. I hoped Katara would come up. And bring me lunch. Soon I heard a knock on the door.

"Come in," I choked on my words.

Katara flung open the door and ran to my bed side, her knees on the ground. She brushed away the tears on my face.

"Does your leg still hurt? Toph told me your heartbeat went through the roof during earth bending. Does it still hurt that badly?" I nodded.

"You should skip school the rest of the day. I'll bring your homework to you after school. Oh, and I have your lunch. They didn't have many vegetarian meals, so the only thing I could get you was a salad. Sorry," she said as she pulled out a salad and a bag of candy. "And I thought candy would be good to get some energy," she smiled faintly.

"Thanks! I love salads, so don't worry. That's my favorite type of candy, too."

"Good," she smiled. Then she frowned. "You don't look so good. Is it your leg or something else?" she asked.

"Just my- ahh, leg," I muttered, embarrassed by my small outbreak.

She frowned and shook her head. "Does the medication help?"

"No, not really," I replied.

"Well, is there anything I could do to help?" she asked.

I could feel the tears coming to my eyes. The throbbing pain was back. "Close your eyes," I said.

"Um, okay," she said as she covered her eyes with her hands. I let out a few tears, and then wiped them away.

"Okay, you can open them now," I said.

"Aang, I don't care if you cry. I know you're feeling intense pain, and if I were you, I would probably be yelling and screaming in pain," she noted.

My mouth dropped a little. How did she know everything? "Thanks," I whispered.

"It's okay. Well, I should probably get going to class. I'll be back after school to help you with your homework," she said as she planted a kiss on my cheek. I returned it, and then she got up and left the room.

Good? Bad? Review!! hey! So, yah, that was Aang. How did you like the POV. I thought I'd try it. So, my next chapter is going to jump a couple weeks, so it will be one week before he gets his cast off. Will he spill the beans about being the avatar? Anyways, review this chapter and tell me what you think. REVIEW!! thanks. Over and out.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11- One Week

Katara's POV! Yay! So, this is one week before Aang get's his cast off. Enjoy!

--

I'm so glad that Aang's getting his cast off soon. The first two weeks he was in a lot of pain. He had to go home in the middle of the day almost three times every week. But, now he seems to be doing a lot better, or at least he's gotten used to the pain. He hasn't missed class in about a week, and can carry his backpack by himself now. But, I always offer to carry his books, which in addition to mine, can way a ton.

I set his books down on his bed as we sat on his mattress. My back has been hurting lately, but I don't think I've shown it. Aang must be in a lot more pain then I was ever in. But, as we sat down, he rubbed my back.

"I'm really sorry you have to carry all of my books. I can't wait until I get off my crutches. It can't be good for your back," he said. I snickered. Was I really that transparent? I rested my head on his shoulder.

"So, when they take your cast off, do they have to anything else they have to do?" I asked.

He frowned. "Yah, they have to have another surgery to get the stitches out. It shouldn't hurt anymore when then they put them in. But, after that, I'll only have a boot, not a cast. And, I won't have theses stupid crutches!" He ended with a smile.

"One week," I whispered happily.

"Yup," he added, and reclined so that his head was resting on wall. I followed, with his hand still on my back. Our fingers intertwined as he pulled my closer with his other arm. He drew me in for a kiss, and then whispered in my ear.

"Happy one month anniversary, Katara." I blushed and smiled as he pulled out a box from his pocket. He opened it, and I gasped when I saw a bracelet carved from water. It was a beautiful mix of whites and blues all swirling around each other. I just gaped at it until he pulled it out and placed it on my wrist.

"Do you like it? I made it myself," he asked.

"Pft! Like it? It's gorgeous! I love it, Aang. Thank you," I replied. "I feel bad now. My gift seems pretty small compared to this." I added as a pulled at a large bag from my backpack. I handed him it. It was a new tee shirt, and a new pair pants inside a new back pack. I had bought it all at the campus store.

"Are you kidding me?! This stuff is awesome! It fits perfectly," he said as he replaced his current shirt with his new one.

"Glad you like it," I said, smiling. He grinned from ear to ear. Surely, this was more than he had ever gotten for his birthday, or Christmas. I wonder when his birthday is.

"Hey, Aang? When's your birthday?" I asked.

"Oh, um… my birthday? It's o-on, it's in a week," he answered quietly.

"But, that's the day you get your cast off! You can't have surgery on your birthday," I exclaimed.

"Well, it's really just any other ordinary day really," he replied. "I don't mind."

"Well, I suppose," I frowned. I think me and some other friends should make him a big surprise party when he gets back from surgery.

Aang made a large flinch.

"Aghh!"

I immediately got off from his shoulder and put a hand on his forehead. "What is it?"

"N-nothing. I'm j-just getting the surges ag-again," he managed to say.

"Still hurt?" I asked. He nodded, obviously trying to hold back tears.

"This hasn't happen for about a week. Did you strain your leg at all?"

He shook his head as a couple tears rolled down his check. I quickly wiped them away. I could tell this was one of his worst pain attacks. He had fought the tears for the other ones. I sat back down next to him, and hugged him, slowly rocking him back and forth. Suddenly the door opened to Sokka. I gave him a penetrating look. He frowned into a sad face, and walked out the door. Aang began to hiccup and he whispered into my ear, "Make it stop. Please, make it stop."

I hushed him and after a half an hour of silent sobbing, Aang fell asleep in my arms. I gently placed him in his bed, and covered him with his blankets. I kissed his forehead and walked out of the room. I opened the door to my room, and saw that Suki, Sokka, Toph, Zuko, Mai, Pailo, Ty Le, Haru, and Carah were all in there.

Zuko looked up. "Aang having another pain attack?"

I nodded. "He fell asleep a minute ago."

"Poor kid," Suki sighed.

"Yah, and he's having surgery on his birthday to get his stitches removed. I think we should throw him a party," I said.

"That's a great idea!" Ty Lee exclaimed.

"Perfect. Then it's settled. We'll all throw a birthday party for Aang when he gets back from surgery. Just us, and it has to be a surprise. Everyone in?" I asked. Everyone smiled and nodded. This was going to be the best party Aang's ever been to.

Good? Bad? Review!! I'm soooo sorry it took me so long. How'd you like? REVIEW!! thanks. Over and out.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12- Coming Back

"Aang, you really should take it easy. You just had surgery," Katara said. Aang was still dizzy from the medicine. He was walking as fast as he could to get back to his dorm. What Katara didn't know was that he should be taking it easy and he knew that, but he was in so much pain that he just wanted to get to his dorm.

"Aang, are you okay? Why are you walking so fast?"

"I just want to get back home," he said. Katara smiled. The party was waiting for him. Suddenly he sat down on a nearby bench and held his head.

"I don't feel good," he said shakily. Katara put a hand on his shoulder and helped him lean back.

"Come on. Let's get you back to your dorm," Katara said. The party would have to wait until later. She helped him up and let him rest on her shoulder as they walked towards the elevator. As they began to ascend, Aang could feel the room spinning.

"Aang?" It seemed like she said it a million times, until he finally saw stars, and blacked out.

"Aang!" Katara crouched down to next to him, and the elevator door opened to the ninth floor. Katara carried him as best as she could to his room. She opened the door.

"Surpri-!" the group that was ready for Aang's surprise party paused when they saw the unconscious boy.

"He wasn't feeling well and he blacked out. Someone get some water. Sokka, get some towels. Suki, get his bed ready!" Katara barked orders as she handed Aang over to Zuko. He put him on his bed, and Katara pulled up a chair next to the bed. She dipped at towel into the cool water, and placed it on Aang's head.

"He's burning up," Toph said.

Katara bit her lip. "Someone get me a big bag of ice," she said. Haru started running down stairs to get some ice from the cafeteria. Katara began to unbutton Aang's shirt. It was the only to keep him from overheating. She gazed at his well-toned abs a little, before throwing his shirt to the side, and placed the bag of ice on his chest. His eyes twitched a little bit, and then fluttered open. He began to sit up and then groaned in pain as he clutched his leg. Katara reacted immediately by hugging the boy and helping him back on his pillow. He looked around to see a big group of worried people all crowded into one small space.

"H-hey g-guys. W-what are you doing h-here?" he choked.

"Well, we were _planning _on throwing you a surprise birthday party, but that didn't work at to well," Toph said staring into space.

"O-oh. Th-thanks. Sorry about that," Aang said sheepishly.

"That's okay, Aang. You probably need your rest. We'll come back later when you're feeling better," Carah added.

The all whispered "happy birthday," and left, leaving Aang and Katara.

"K-Katara? W-why is it so c-cold?" he shivered.

"You were burning up," Katara answered as she pulled the ice off of his chest. Aang blushed, realizing his shirtlessness. Katara bent down and kissed him. He scooted over and motioned for her to lie down. She obliged and was careful not to touch his fragile leg.

"W-what happened?" he whispered.

"Shh. You fainted," she answered, pulling his shaggy hair out of his face. She pulled a blanket over them and hugged him, in an attempt to keep him warm.

"W-well, at least I g-got my cast off," he muttered. She smiled.

"That's definitely good," she said. "You need your rest." He closed his eyes.

"I love you," he said.

Katara lied there, shocked and speechless.

"I-I love you too," she answered. He smiled and went to sleep. Katara kept thinking to herself about his last line. _I love you. I love you. I love you._ They kept replaying in her head. But, eventually she also fell asleep.

-----------------------

"K-Katara?" Aang whispered. Katara's eyes fluttered open.

"What is it Aang?" she replied.

"Do you want to go d-down to the lake?"

"I guess. Are you sure you feel up to it?" Katara asked.

"I-I think so," he answered, as he started getting up. He winced a little, but continued to sit up as Katara helped him get to his feet. He smiled a little to thank her, but a muffled whimper escaped his lips as his left foot reached the ground. Although it was a struggle to reach the lake, their feet finally landed on the shore and they took a seat, letting the waves lap against their toes. Katara rested her head on Aang's shoulder.

"You feeling okay?" she asked. He nodded.

"I'm just happy I finally got off those crutches. I've been waiting quite a while to do this," he said he brought her in his arms and kissed her with a passion she much enjoyed. They finally escaped, gasping for breath. She smiled and snaked her arm around his waist, as she did the same.

"Did you really mean it?" she finally asked.

"Mean what?"

"When I was lying next to you after you fainted. D-did you really mean what you said?" she said quietly.

"Well, it depends. What did I say?" he asked sheepishly.

"Well, y-you said that you, um, l-loved me," she answered, biting her lip. Aang almost choked. He sat there silent for a couple minutes.

"You must have been dizzy from the drugs or something. It's okay," Katara interrupted the silence.

"N-no. I mean, that's what I've been thinking for all this time, it's just….. I've never said, but I think I do. I do love you," he whispered almost to himself. Katara smiled as they leaned against each other, watching the sun set on the lake.

Good? Bad? Review!!! I am sooooo sorry it's been so long. Did you like it? Aang's finally better! Yay! So, was it too rushed? I don't know. But, I'm moving forward with the plot! REVIEW!!! thanks. Over and out.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13- Excitement

Katara awoke to see a drop of water on the bracelet Aang had carved for her. She looked up at the sky to see dark clouds and gray skies. She looked at Aang who was still peacefully sleeping. Then she remembered they were on the lake shore. She heard a clap of thunder and it started sprinkling. Although she didn't mind dancing in the rain with Aang, she didn't want his stitches to get infected.

"Aang, Aang," she whispered as she shook him gently.

"Five more minutes Gyatso," Aang said as he rolled over.

"Aang. Come on, it's going to rain!" Katara shook him some more. Finally his eyes opened.

"What?" he mumbled.

"It's about to rain," she replied.

"Oh," he said as he began to sit up. They both stood up and Aang wrapped his arm around his waist, keeping her warm from the cold weather. She buried her head in his arm and smiled. As it began to pour, he put his hand up and water bended the water away. Eventually they got to Hog Monkey Hall. Aang insisted on using the stairs. Katara helped him up all nine floors, but not without a struggle. Finally, they were sitting on Aang's bed, wrapped in a blanket, sipping hot chocolate.

"Why don't you open your presents from everyone?" Katara said.

"Okay. Where are they?" he replied.

"Under your bed," she smiled. He looked under the bed to see five wrapped presents. He grabbed the first one which was a green bag. It was from Toph and Pailo. He opened it up and found an earth bender's hat.

"Cool! Hey, Katara, you think I should send out thank you's or something?" he asked.

"Nah. Just thank them in person," she replied. He shrugged and picked up the next present. A navy blue box wrapped with a dark green bow. It was from Carah and Lee. Aang tore open the wrapping to see a pair of new jeans. His eyes lit up as he held them up against his waist. They were the perfect size. He threw that on his bed, and reached under and grabbed red bag. It was from Mai and Zuko. Inside was a shirt that had a cabbage rockin' out with a tsungi horn. It read "Vegetarians Rock!" Aang laughed and set it next to his pants. Next, he pulled out a yellow box. It was from Suki and Sokka. He ripped the wrapping off to reveal four pairs of socks, each pair with a different nation's symbol on it: water, earth, fire, and air. Aang gasped slightly at this, and then dismissed the thought, and looked at his last present. It was from Katara. He rested his head on hers, and then carefully lifted the blue and white wrapping paper from the box. It was a custard tart pie, Aang's favorite food in the world. Aang looked at it as his eyes widened and he gulped. He was fighting the immense urge to stuff his face.

"How did you-" he choked, "know?"

"I saw your mouth water when we walked past it in the gift shop," she giggled.

He hugged her. But she pulled away.

"There's more. Check under it," Katara instructed.

Aang lifted the tart carefully to reveal a gift card to the campus gift shop.

"I wasn't sure exactly what you wanted," she said sheepishly.

"No, it's great! Thanks, Katara," he kissed her. They smiled as they looked out the window.

"Looks like it's almost winter," Aang whispered. Katara nodded and cuddled closer to Aang. He wrapped a warm hand around her and they stayed in the embrace. Aang air bended the excess wrapping paper into the garbage. Soon, they were fast asleep.

"Ring!" The couple awoke to the alarm clock. Aang rubbed his eyes as Katara yawned. He felt something on his forehead. He took it off. It was a post-it note that said, "Don't you dare touch her Aang! -Sokka." Then he took the sticky note off of Katara's forehead. It read, "Adorable, really adorable you guys. –Zuko." They both blushed. Katara apparently had spent the night, without even really knowing it.

"I don't think I've ever slept that late in my life!" Aang said. Katara smiled and planted a kiss on his cheek. He followed suit.

"Well, we have a half an hour before our classes. We better get breakfast," Katara said. Aang combed his hair a little and Katara straightened out her skirt. They then walked down to breakfast, hands intertwined. Soon, they had to part to their classes. It was Aang's first earth bending class since the accident, and he was nervous. Toph was his partner for the day. He was glad that this was someone he knew, but was truly scared f her awesome prowess. He also had a lot of catching up to do.

"So class *snort* we are going to work on kicking today," Bumi told the class. Then he turned to Aang. "Well, I suppose you've been watching the earth bending formations, correct?" Aang nodded. "Then, you should be able to do them without any problem, but today, we are working on entirely new things, so you won't be left out at all," he smiled. Aang bowed, and took his spot next to Toph. Bumi showed the class what they would be doing that day.

"You'll keep your left foot on the ground, and that will support all of your weight. Then you will kick the earth that you have summoned," Bumi demonstrated. Everyone nodded, except for Aang. He had just gotten out of cast with surgery and everything. How the heck was he supposed to support all of his weight on his bad leg?! But, he decided to try. He struck the earth, trying to summon a piece of rock. Nothing happened. He tried it again. Still nothing happened. He gave it one more go, and the rock didn't even vibrate.

---------------------------

Meanwhile in Sokka's ceramics class…..

"Danggit! Why won't it smooth out?!" Sokka cried. Suki giggled.

"You need to get it wet silly! Like this," she showed him on her own platform. Then she reached over to put his hands on his to try to help him smooth out his *#cough#* "snake". When her fingers touched his, they immediately blushed. But, eventually the snake smoothed out. Then Sokka said in a really high pitched voice:

"Oh.. thanks," Sokka then gulped and said in a low "manly" voice, "I mean, thanks Suki."

--------------

Back with Aang….

"Doesn't seem to be working out for you, does it Aang?" Toph observed.

"No, not to well," he said in defeat.

"Just hit the rock straight on. Pretend you're striking through the Fire Nation militia!" she said.

"What Fire Nation militia?" Aang asked.

"What?! You didn't know? Dude, this whole school was built for two reasons: the primary one was to educate students- at a hefty cost I might add. The secondary reason," she whispered, "is to train people."

"Why?" Aang asked.

"Because, rumor has it that the Fire Nation is going to use the "Midnight Comet" and create a militia to conquer the world. Over half the students that go this school were accepted do to their abilities. If the Fire Nation attacks, we need to be ready. It's the Avatar's duty to save the world, but in my personal opinion, there is no avatar, since there are no more air benders. That's why this school requires everyone to take a course in either martial arts, swords or other weaponry, and of course: bending. It's also why there's only a small fire bending class."

"But, didn't the old fire lord try to take over the world before? He used Midnight Comet to…." Aang looked down at his shoes, with saddened in his voice, "to annihilate the air benders. Why are they trying to do it again?"

"Well, it seems like the new fire lord wants to be the "Phoenix King," or some ridiculous figure like that. How should I know? I'm just a blind earth bender minding my own business," she said as she began pounding the earth again.

"Oh," Aang breathed, and the bell rang. Time for lunch.

After lunch, Katara and Aang began walking to geography class and the boring lecture began once more. After an hour and a half of snore worthy discussion, the bell was about to ring.

"Oh, and kids, you might have already heard this, because it goes for your other classes too, but midterms are coming up, and we want everyone to be prepared. So, start studying!" Piandao finished right before the bell rang. Aang sighed and Katara put a hand on his shoulder.

"Midterms won't be that bad Aang," she smiled.

"It's not that I'm worried about….."

…………………. "Ring!"

Everyone was in their seats, ready to begin history class. Mr. Iroh smiled and began talking to the class.

"Hello everyone! So, as you know, we have been studying the history of the earth kingdom this quarter. So, as a midterm field trip, we will be taking a week long field trip to….. Ba Sing Se!"

The class roared with whispered and excitement.

"We will each be sharing a room. I have assigned the room arrangement the same as your seating arrangement! I hope you like that!" Aang looked at Katara, and she looked at him. They smiled. Wow, a week in the same bedroom- with two beds of course! They both thought.

"So, each room will be equipped with a fridge, a bathroom, two twin beds, a television, a dresser, and a desk. Thankfully, you will not have any homework on the trip because it will come right after midterms." The class cheered at this last statement. "So, today we will be planning out week."

By the end of the class, they had a definite schedule. Mr. Iroh quickly typed it up, and handed it to everyone. It read:

_Day 1: Last Day of finals. Board bus at 6:00pm, and arrive at airport at 7:00pm. Depart at 9:00pm_

_Day 2: Arrive at 9:00am in Ba sing Se. Walk to hotel and meet in the lobby for lunch. Introduction to Ba Sing Se. Dinner._

_Day 3: Breakfast in the lobby at 8:00am. Tour of old Ba Sing Se at 9:00. Lunch. Continue tour until dinner._

_Day 4: Breakfast. Trip to Lake Laogai. Kayaking, etc. Picnic on the beach. Campfire for dinner, and we will be camping on the beach for the night._

_Day 5: Breakfast. Visit upper ring. Lunch. Tour the middle ring and shops. Dinner._

_Day 6: Breakfast. Visit zoo. Lunch. Go to the University and sit in on activity. Dinner._

_Day 7: Breakfast. Attend play. Lunch. Tour the Earth King's Palace. Dinner._

_Day 8: Spiritmas in the park all day!_

_Day 9: Breakfast. Leave for airport at 5:00pm. Depart at 7:00pm. Arrive at 7:00am. Board bus at 7:30am. Arrive at campus at 8:30am._

_NOTE: After dinner every night, you are free to explore Ba Sing Se (with at least one other person) until your curfew at 10:00pm. Lights out at midnight. ENJOY!!!_

_-Iroh_

"Sounds like fun," Katara beamed. Aang smiled and nodded.

"So, you want to go down to the lake with me?" he asked.

"I'd love to!" she replied. So, she took his hand, and they began walking to the shore. The wind was starting to pick up as they took their seats. Aang was wearing a dense sweater shirt that was keeping him warm, but Katara was only wearing a light jacket. He saw her grip her arms.

"You're cold," he stated. It wasn't a question.

"No, really. I'm fine," but before she could finish, Aang's sweat shirt was wrapped around her, and she felt a pair of arms hold her close and tight. Katara felt the warmth of his inner fire bender. She smiled and pecked him as a 'thank you.'

"So, are you excited?" he asked.

"About sharing a room with you, or about Ba Sing Se?" she smirked.

"Both," he answered, snickering.

"Yah," she said. "I'm really excited."

Good? Bad? Review!!! I am sooooooooooo sorry it took me so long to update. Homework's just crazy, ya know? So, anyways, hope you like it! REVIEW!!! thanks. Over and out. 


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14- Mid Terms

It was a week before mid terms and the classes had been let out so the students could study. Aang was in his dorm studying and Sokka and Zuko were having a sword fight. There was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Aang said, not looking up from his math book. Katara came in smiling.

"Do you want to go have lunch with me?" she asked. Aang looked up and bit his lip.

"I'd love to…. But, I have to study," he sighed.

"Aang, you've been studying since seven in the morning. It's two o'clock! You really need a break," she said, walking over to rub his sore shoulders.

"But, if I don't get a 700 on the midterms, then I'll have to do three hours of after school work every day to maintain my scholarship. I'm usually up to midnight as it is. I can't take another three hours!" Aang said, exasperated.

"But Aang, you won't be able to pass the midterms if you don't even sleep! Besides, you need food. Come on," she said firmly.

Aang sighed. "Okay, but only for an hour."

_At least it's something. _Katara thought. Although an hour might seem long for most people, Katara and Aang usually stayed together at least three hours for lunch until they either parted, or went somewhere else.

Soon, the couple was going down the stairs. On the fifth floor, Aang pulled Katara into an empty corridor and held her up against the wall as they made out. When they finally resumed walking, they held their hands tight together, and Katara smiled.

"Now that's the Aang I know."

When they finally got to the cafeteria, they got their lunch and walked out.

"Lake?" Katara asked.

"Sounds good to me," Aang answered.

They got the lake, and Katara was about to sit down when she suddenly felt arms under her knees and on her back. Aang had picked her up and was about to jump. Katara gasped, but instinctively put an arm around his neck. _When did he get so much arm muscle?_ She thought. Then, Aang jumped up, straight into a tree. She almost yelled, but then she noticed that they landed softly on a branch, high up in a tree. She looked down and her eyes widened. They were at least twenty five feet in the air. Noticing Katara's fear, Aang snaked an arm around her, and held her tight to himself. She wrapped an arm around his waist and held it tight, to be sure she wasn't going to fall.

"It's beautiful up here," Katara said. She had a catbird's eye view of the lake, and she clearly saw the reflection of the red and orange leaves falling from the trees. She snuggled closer to him buried her face into his arm. She smiled and they began to carefully eat their lunch. Soon, they finished and according to sun clock next to the lake, they had a half an hour left.

"So, what do you want to do now?" Katara asked.

"Well," Aang smirked and stood up, Katara in his arms. He jumped across from tree to tree until he found a big oak tree. He jumped up a few feet until they stood on a large branch. He set her down so she was standing up and put his hands on her waist. He carefully led her towards the center of the tree. Katara looked down and gulped. At least fifty feet in the air. She stumbled a little bit and thought she was going to fall. She closed her eyes and braced herself for impact. But then she felt her back against something warm. She looked up at Aang, to see him hugging her tightly. She smiled and blushed in embarrassment.

"You okay?" he asked in worried tone.

"Yah, I'm fine," she smiled.

"Good, because we're almost there," he said, retracting from the embrace a little. They began to walk again, Aang's arms still around Katara's waist.

"Almost where?" she asked.

"You'll see," he smirked. After a couple more minutes of walking, Aang smiled.

"There it is," he said.

"What? The stem of the tree?" she said, somewhat annoyed.

"No, it's on the other side. Come on," he said as he hugged her again. He jumped over a couple branched and landed on the opposite side of the tree. Katara looked at the tree. It was about thirty feet in diameter. Then her eyes leveled out and she saw a small hole in the tree.

"That?" she asked, pointing to the door. He smiled and nodded. They slowly walked over to the opening, and he helped her inside. She gaped at the sight. It was a small room; only about five feet by five feet, and seven feet high. It had two bean bag chairs, a rug, a small table, and many blankets, thrown into the corner. There were no lights, but Katara saw that there were many holes on the top of each wall to let in light. There were also lights, scattered around the walls.

"Wow," she breathed.

"Yah," Aang smiled. I found it about two weeks ago, after my leg got better. It was covered in cobwebs and dust. You couldn't even see through the windows because there was so much dirt. So, I decided to clean it, which took a whole week. Then, I got the furniture and stuff from the school's gift shop, with the gift card you gave me," he paused. He motioned for her to sit down on a chair. He moved his close to hers and draped a blanket over her. He got up and went over to a small notch in the tree. He opened it up and Katara saw that there was a mini pantry. It had five jugs of water, some drink mix, and snacks.

"About a week ago I started to 'customize' the tree. I place little cubbies all over it. I could show you them in a minute," he said. Katara smiled and nodded. Then, he turned back around and pulled at another notch, which pulled out into a small counter. He reached for one more knob and pulled out two cups and a plate. He poured water into the cups and mixed the instant hot chocolate in them. Then, he each cup over his hand and fire bended them until each were hot. He set them down and pulled out a box of mixed cookies. He grabbed a few and then put them on a plate.

He carried the three pieces of dishware over to the bean bag chair. He set the cups and plates down on the table and sat on his bean bag chair. He pulled the blanket Katara had and draped it over himself so they were both under the blanket. His arm wrapped under her waist and he pulled her close, so they both on the same bean bag chair. She laid her legs over his thighs and rested her head on his chest. **No, she is not on his lap.**

Aang reached over and grabbed the two mugs. He gave her one, and kept one to himself. Then, he reached over for the cookie tray and set that on the floor next to them. She smiled as she sipped her hot chocolate. Then she looked over at the clock. They had fifteen minutes left.

Aang's arm relaxed and rested on the small of her back. He rested his chin on her head and looked out the door.

"What are you thinking about?" Katara asked.

"Nothing much. Just about this coming week. You know, with midterms and everything. I'm just worried I won't be able to get 700," he sighed.

"Aang, you're the smartest guy I've ever met. You probably don't even need to study!" she paused. "Is it the bending you're worried about?"

"Yah……" he frowned. "I mean, water and fire I'm fine with. But I can't even get a pebble to move. Let alone, do all of the formations that I need to learn. If it wasn't for my stupid leg," he glared at his scarred left leg, "then I'd probably be caught up."

"I'm sure Bumi will give you a break. He knows about your leg and all. No one could be mean enough to mark you down because of a serious injury."

"I hope you're right," he sighed.

------------

Katara looked at her clock. Two in the morning. She went to bed at her normal time: ten, but she kept waking up. She just couldn't sleep. Earlier that day, she and Aang had a fantastic lunch up in the tree, but now she felt alone. She decided to go down to the lobby and read a book near the fireplace. Although it was past curfew, the guards would escort her to the lobby if she said that she was going to study. She got out of bed and changed into some decent clothes. She wrote a note to Toph and Carah and left it on her bed, just in case one of them woke up and wondered where she was. Then, she quietly walked out of the room, and down the stairs to the main floor of Hog Monkey Hall. There, she ran into a guard.

"Its past curfew," he said gently.

"I know. I was going to the lobby to study," she said sweetly.

"Very well. I will escort you," he said as he opened the door for her and they walked out. When they got to the lobby she said her thanks and walked in, leaving the guard to go back to his post. She looked around the lobby. There was only a boy at a table studying. _He probably couldn't sleep either, _she thought. She walked over to the books and picked one that she thought she would like. Then, she sat by the fireplace and began to read. She couldn't help but think how stupid the guard was for letting her go to the lobby at two in the morning, but just smirked and continued reading.

After reading about five pages, she got bored of the book and was about to get up to get a new one. She looked over at the boy who was furiously writing things down while sometimes cocking his head towards the book. She looked at his hair. It looked pitch black in the dimmed lobby. The hair looked familiar, and so did the shirt. And then she saw a small, quick glimpse of half of his face. _Aang._

"Oh no," she whispered to herself. She set her book down and walked over to the table where Aang was. He was so engrossed in his book that he didn't even notice Katara. She looked at his face. It was definitely Aang. But he looked different. He had no shine in his silver eyes, but he did have bags under his eyes. His hair was uncombed and went in every direction possible. He had no smile on his face, just a firm line that hid his lips. His chest moved slowly as he breathed and his usually muscular arms drooped as he wrote. His stomach growled.

Katara burrowed her eyes together as she sat down next to him.

"Aang."

He shot up. "K- Katara? What are you doing here? You should be sleeping," he said quickly.

She frowned. "I should be telling you that. Aang, do you know what time it is?! Two in the morning! Have you gotten any sleep? And your stomach just growled again! Have you eaten anything since lunch?"

He looked down at his lap. "No," he said quietly.

She wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace. "Aang, don't do this to yourself. You need food and sleep. And why aren't you in your dorm studying?"

"Well, about four hours ago, Sokka and Zuko decided to go to bed, and they didn't want my light on. So, they sort of kicked me out." Katara nodded.

"Well, we could go up to the tree hole thing and sleep there," she said.

"But, won't everyone wonder where we went?" Aang doubted.

"We'll see them in the morning."

"I guess," he finally gave in. Katara smiled and they packed up their things and snuck past the guards. Soon, they were at the oak tree.

"Aang, you don't look to awake. I can get myself up with water bending," Katara said.

"No, no. It's alright," he said as he pulled her close and got ready to jump. They jumped ten, twenty, thirty feet. Katara could see that Aang was exhausted. His eyelids were threatening to close, but he held her tight. He jumped to forty feet, but slipped. They fell about five feet onto the branch below them, Aang making sure he was on the bottom. He fell hard on his right leg.

"Aang, are you okay?" she asked.

"Yah, I'm fine. Sorry about that. I must have just slipped," he replied. Katara stood up and Aang got up next to her. She saw him wince. Before she had time to ask if he was hurt badly, he held her tight against him and jumped the remaining height. They then walked and in Aang's case limped, into the tree house.

"Aang, you were limping a little. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yah, it doesn't hurt that much," he lied through his teeth.

"Let me see it," Katara demanded.

"See what?"

"Your leg!"

"Oh. No, no. It's fine. Really."

"If it's fine, then I should be able to look at it," she smirked.

"Fine," Aang succumbed to Katara. He pulled his foot out from underneath him so she could examine it. She pulled up his pant leg and made a muffled gasp sound. It was a fist sized purple and blue bruise with scrapes all over it.

"Well, it's not as bad as my left leg was," he smiled weakly. She frowned.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"For what?"

"You wouldn't have slipped if you weren't carrying me."

"But I wanted to carry you," he smiled and pulled her close. She smiled to, and they both fell asleep.

------------

The next six days went on like this. Aang would barely sleep or eat, and Katara would be there to help and comfort him. His leg didn't look much better and it still hurt when he walked, but there were small signs of improvement. Aang had been nervous all week about midterms, but now he was literally shivering. Today was the first day of midterms. The class all took their seats in Zhao's class as he began to hand out the test. Katara was sitting next to Aang and she smiled at him, trying to calm him down. He tried to smile, but it was interrupted by his shivering.

As Zhao finished handing out the test, he walked to the front of the room. "If I see anyone cheating," he lit up him hand with fire, "I will burn it." Aang gulped. Zhao continued, "When you are done, leave your test in this pile, and quickly and quietly leave. Does everyone understand," he said menacingly. Everyone nodded. "Begin!"

Aang looked at his test. First problem. _5x + 4 – 7(x-13) = ? _Wow! This is easy! Aang thought. The rest of the exam was like this. Soon, Aang finished and was out of the classroom. He stole a glance at Katara and saw that she was on the last page. He decided to wait for her outside. After five more people left and it had been ten minutes, Katara walked out of the classroom.

"Hey," Aang smiled.

"Hey! You finished that test early. Come one. Let's go practice some water bending," she grabbed his hand.

"That test is tomorrow right?" he asked.

"Yah. We only have one test a day. But, we could always use some practice!" she said.

When they were over at the lake, Katara smirked at him. "Practice fight?"

"Sure!"

They got in their stances and soon they were throwing water at each other. Katara made a water whip and threw it at him. It stung his arm a little bit, but he kept bending. He threw a water whip back at her. She wasn't quick enough and it made a shallow one inch cut in her palm. She stopped bending and looked at it. There was a little bit a blood, but nothing serious. It just stung.

"I'm so sorry," Aang yelled, running over to her. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his head on hers. "Are you alright?"

"Aang, I'm fine! It was really nothing. Is your arm okay?" she asked smiling.

"Oh yah, it's nothing. Come on, let's go wash off your cut in the lake. They walked over to the shore and Aang put his jacket down for Katara to sit down on. She put her hands in the lake and all of her pain seemed to go away.

"Wow, this water really does work!" Then she pulled out her hand. The cut was gone!

"Is this water magic or something?" Katara breathed.

"I don't think so. Let me see," Aang out his stinging arm into the water. He pulled it out and it was still there. Then Katara bended the water around her hand and placed it on Aang's arm. When she pulled away, his sting was gone.

"Katara, I think you have healing abilities!" Aang said gleefully. Katara just looked at her hands and smiled.

------------

The next three days were easy for Aang and Katara. Aang thought he did great on his tests. Water bending, fire bending, and science were very easy for him. But today, Aang and Katara didn't have any tests because fifth period was there free period. So, Aang decided to take Katara on a day long date. They decided they would spend the day in their tree. They weren't quite sure what they were going to do, but they'd think of something. It was a very stormy day. It was forecasted to be a stormy week. But this didn't stop the couple from venturing outside.

They went about in their usual routine. Aang would hold Katara close and they would jump up until they found the right branch. When they finally got up there they sat down on their chair. They had a long conversation ranging anywhere from spiritual matters to platypus bears. Finally, at three o'clock, they ran out of things to say. That, and their lips were dry from laughing and talking all day.

"So….." Katara began.

"So, um. I didn't really know how to tell you this, Katara, so I'll just come right out with it. Well, do you know about the Fire Nation's plot to take over the world beginning on the day of Midnight's Comet?" Aang asked.

"Yah," she looked down sadly. "Everyone in Omashu does. Well, except for the very few fire benders. Zuko doesn't know."

"Well, Toph told me that it's the Avatar's duty to stop them," he said. Katara grew wide eyed.

"Oh, oh yah. I, I guess I knew that, I- just forgot that you and….." she sighed, "My boyfriend is the Avatar, huh?"

"Yah. As unfortunate as it is," he paused, suddenly realizing what he said. "I-I mean being the Avatar, not the boyfriend part," he mumbled. Katara smiled and drew him in for a kiss.

------------

"Aang, your turn!" Bumi said from the side of the rock garden. It was his turn to earth bend in front of the whole class. Toph, Pailo, and Haru had already gone and left, leaving only Aang and some other kids. Aang took a deep breath and walked up to the front.

"Make a dent in the ground," Bumi commanded.

Aang looked at the ground and punch his fist into it. His knuckles were sore when he pulled his fist away. There was a slightest dent in the soil. Bumi took notes on his paper.

"Kick a rock up," he stated.

Aang kicked the earth as hard as he could, but only a loose pebble moved.

"Hah! Some rock!" a kid called out.

"My three year old sister can earth bend better than you!" another shouted.

Aang looked down. Bumi scolded the boys and continued writing.

"Can you get the rock into the air?" Bumi asked.

Aang tried many different positions. But none of them worked. Finally, he stopped in disappointment. After a few minutes of jeering, Bumi was almost done writing.

"You may go now Aang," he said quietly. As Aang was walking away he heard some more jeering.

"I bet your great grandpa's better than you!"

"A hamster is stronger than you!"

"The air benders are dead ballerina boy! Stop acting like a wuss!"

That last comment sent Aang over the edge. He could almost feel the Avatar spirit take control. He kept thinking of Katara, and that calmed him down a little bit. He started running. He kept running and running, eyes gathering with tears.

------------

Katara smiled happily. She had just finished her swimming finals and was now merrily skipping to find Aang. After a half an hour, she almost gave up. She looked everywhere he should be: the dorm, the lobby, the cafeteria, everywhere! She decided to go look for Toph, since she had class with Aang last.

"Hey Toph! Have you seen Aang?" she asked.

"Well, I haven't seen him, but my friend Meng told me he was getting ridiculed after his earth bending exam and he ran off. No one's seen him since," she replied. "Sorry."

"Thanks Toph!" she shouted as she started running towards the lake. She summoned water and shot herself up to the door in the tree. She had just learned that water bending move a week ago.

She walked in the door to find Aang in the corner, knees pulled to his chest. She sat down next to him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. She held back a shiver. She forgot the rain outside. She was drenched and cold, but she knew Aang was in a worse state than her.

"Are you okay?" she asked quietly. He nodded.

"They….. said some stuff about the- air benders. I just over reacted," he answered solemnly.

"No you didn't Aang. Those kids were completely out of line. You had every right to run off," she said warmly.

"I almost went into the Avatar state."

Katara gaped. She looked up and stared at Aang. She completely forgot about everything around her and let herself shiver.

"I'm so stupid. I hope you don't catch a cold," he said as he got up to get a blanket. He came back with a couple blankets and sat down next to her. He wrapped her first in her own blanket then draped another over both of them. Then, he wrapped both arms around her. His head rested on her shoulder when he realized that her sweatshirt had been soaked. He took of his jacket and hers. Hers was tossed to the side as his was wrapped warmly around her.

"Thanks Aang," she smiled at him.

"I'm sorry," he said.

"Aang, really, it's fine," she looked at him, "I love you."

"I love you too," he smiled.

She took his hand in hers and squeezed it tightly. Aang visibly winced.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Earth bending. Or at least attempting to."

---------

After two more days of testing, mid terms were finally over. Now they had all assembled into their first period class to receive their scores. Katara held Aang's shaking hand as his other began to open the envelope.

_Math: 99_

_Water bending: 100_

_Science: 98_

_Fire bending: 97_

_Free Period: 100_

Aang smirked. They gave you one hundred free.

_Earth bending: _ 10

Aang shuddered and bit his lip.

_Geography: 98_

_History: 100_

Here it comes.

_Total: 702_

Aang hugged Katara, absolutely overjoyed that he had, although just barely, gotten over a 700.

Mid terms were over.

Good? Bad? Review!!! woot! Longest chapter so far. So, how'd you guys like it. REVIEW!!! thanks. Over and out.


	15. author's note 1:

Hello awesome readers!!!

I have been so incredibly busy with high school and finals and crap.. soooo

That's why I haven't been writing in such a long time. Even though I REALLY wanted to. But now, with it being winter break and me being all dressed up (in pajamas) and no place to go……… I will probably add lots of new chappies.. like 5? Thank you to all of my loyal readers (and reviewers =D ) for staying tune, and I am terribly sorry for the wait. Have an awesome winter break and enjoy whatever holiday you'll be celebrating!!! (I hate it when people say merry Christmas… it's so… you know… thoughtless. Not everyone celebrates Christmas, ya know! Even though I do.. but still) Thanks! Oh! And check out my website…… It's about fighting (peacefully) for stuff you believe in… ie: global warming, cancer, etc. Here's the URL:

.com

Over and out.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16 (it's really 15, but I'll call it 16) – Departure

"Aang? Aang!"

Aang shot up from his covers. "H-huh? What? What's going on guys?"

"Oh, nothing much. It's just two o'clock in the afternoon!" Sokka shouted.

"We're leaving in three hours for Ba sing Se. Oh, and you better go see Katara. She thinks you died or something," Zuko added.

Aang's eyes were still wide. "Okay. Thanks for waking me up guys," he said as he walked out of the room. Aang walked across the hall and knocked on the door.

"Hey Twinkletoes. Um… you might have wanted to put some real clothes on," Toph smirked.

Aang looked down and blushed. He was wearing no shirt and pajama bottoms.

"Aang!" Katara ran up from behind Toph and hugged Aang. Then she pulled back and put a hand to his forehead. "No fever…"

"Katara, I'm fine! Come on, let's go and pack. I guess I just needed like seventeen hours of sleep," he joked.

Just as Aang was about to say bye to Toph, Zuko and Sokka came out of their dorm.

"Hey Aang. We were just going to tell you to put some clothes on," Zuko snickered.

Sokka laughed. "Very smooth. Hey, what are those blue lines on yo-"

The five went silent.

"Didn't the air bending masters have tattoos like that?" Zuko whispered. Sokka gulped and nodded.

"So it's true," Sokka added hoarsely.

"Um… how about we all come into the girls' dorm. I'll explain everything," Aang said slowly. Everyone quickly filed in the room and took a seat. Aang and Katara sat on the bed, Toph sat on hers, and Sokka and Zuko pulled up a bean bag chair.

Aang took a deep breath and began. "Okay, so… Sokka and Zuko. I know one of you went through my stuff and read some things. I just wanted you to know, that I'm not mad at you. I knew I'd have to tell you guys eventually. I've just been postponing it. Well, I'm the," he took a deep breath, "I'm the avatar."

0.o

_Two hours later…………_

"All aboard!"

"Alright, do we have everyone here? Um… Toph?" Iroh started.

"Over here."

"Pailo?"

"Yup."

"Azula."

"What is it that you want?"

"Yup, Azula's definitely here. Jet?"

"You really need to ask?"

"Aang?"

"Present."

"Katara?"

"Here."

"Sokka?"

_Snoring. _

Suki face palmed herself. "He's here Iroh."

"Alright. And Suki's here. Zuko?"

Once Iroh was sure that everyone was there, the bus started. Katara smiled and leaned her head against Aang's shoulder. He shakily wrapped an arm around her torso and pulled her close.

"Aang, it's okay. Only four people know. And you trust them, don't you?"

"Yes… it's just…" Aang sighed, "I've never told anyone, besides you, that I'm the…yah."

Katara cupped his cheek in her hand, and turned his face towards her.

"Everything will be okay," she said firmly, but gently. Then she wrapped her arms around him and rested her head on his chest. Once they were comfortably seated, they began to doze off to sleep. Unfortunately, they just began to make their way to the windy and dangerous part of the mountain range. The intercom boomed:

"_Students, please remain seated with your bodies facing the seat in front of you. It will be important to stay like this for the next half hour as this is a um… more dangerous portion of our trip. Thank you."_

Katara looked up at Aang, and he held her a little bit tighter. She exhaled and brought her head off of his chest.

"That's probably not too safe," she muttered. Right as she straightened up the bus swerved violently. Aang gripped the armrest and held Katara impossibly closer. The next fifteen minutes followed much like this as they made their way down the mountain.

"Appa would be a lot safer than this metal monster," Aang mumbled.

"Earth bending, Twinkle Toes. That would be _real _safe," a voice said from the seat behind. Toph's face was pressed to the Aang's seat. "I could make a wave of rocks and jet it right out of here!"

Aang's face dropped a little.

"Oh… sorry, Aang. I didn't mean it like that," she quickly added. "Besides, air bending would probably be even faster."

Aang smiled back and said, "It's okay. I'll learn eventually."

Toph smirked and was about to say something, but Aang was pulled away before she could speak.

"Aang, maybe we should do what the bus driver says, and not turn around in our seats," Katara said with a worried look.

"Come on Sweetness, stop being such a worry wart all the time. But, I understand that you want your alone time, so I'll sit back."

Aang gave Toph a grateful smile and settled back into his seat. Then he looked to the window at the front of the bus to see where they were. But, instead of road, he saw a barrier and a cliff. Suddenly, the bus made a sharp left turn and a suitcase dislodged itself from the ceiling racks. Aang's eyes widened when he realized it was coming straight for Katara. He covered her in a hugging sort of way and put a hand over her head. Then he outstretched his right arm to stop the luggage.

It hit his arm hard and then fell to the floor. Both of his arms were pulled away from Katara and he began to exam his right index finger. The entire bus went silent.

"Aang! Are you okay?" Katara asked.

"Y-yah. I think it's just sprained…"

"Is everything okay back there?" Iroh questioned.

"Everything's fine!" Katara answered, and people began talking again.

She then turned to Aang, put a hand on his abdomen and gently pushed him into the seat backing. She pulled a scarf out of her bag and placed it on her lap. Aang's right hand was then positioned on top of it, as Katara rested her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"You okay up there Twinkle Toes?"

"Yea… I'm okay," he replied gently.

0.o

"Now boarding, flight 43 to Ba Sing Se International Airport."

"Well, I guess that's us," Aang exclaimed.

Katara smiled and got out of her seat. Aang now had a brace on his finger and was walking towards the boarding gate. Once they were on the plane, Aang and Katara had to find their seats. Katara looked at their tickets.

_Katara… : 39A_

_Aang… : 39B_

She looked up and around to find their seats. Bingo!

"Aang, you can have the window seat if you want."

He smiled as he piled her suitcase into the hangers. "Thanks. You know, I've never been on an airplane before."

"Really?! There kind of boring. Especially when there long, like this one. Twelve hours, can you believe it? Half a day in this metal thing. It's not all bad though… the flight attendants are really nice, and… well, I guess I get to sit next to you."

(A/N: Corny… I know. Sorry… =D )

Once they were situated nicely in their seats, Aang sat back into the edge of the seat. He motioned for Katara to lean into him, and he wrapped both arms around her.

"G' night. Love you," Katara mumbled into his chest.

"Love you, too," he replied as he kissed the top of her head.

0.o

"_Hello, and welcome to Ba Sing Se! This flight will be landing shortly. We hope you enjoyed your trip. Thank you!"_

0.o

Good? Bad? Review!!! So, sorry it took so long. I've been really busy baking cookies, going to parties, and doing homework (yes, homework, can you believe it?!) . . . Anyways, I broke my finger and sprained it really badly, so that's where that came from. Hope you liked it! REVIEW!!! thanks! Over and out.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17- Ba Sing Se: Day 1 and half of 2

"I trust that you have all gotten enough sleep," Iroh began happily, "So, we will start… and finish this day with an introduction of Ba Sing Se. I will let you get situated in your bedrooms, but you need to be in the Lobby at one o'clock. Pick up your room keys at the front desk and go to your designated rooms."

"Shall we?" Aang smirked as he picked up a bag.

"We shall," Katara laughed, and they began to walk over to the front desk.

Once the pair got their room keys, for room 467, they hopped on the elevator along with Toph, Pailo, Sokka, Suki, Mai, and Zuko.

"We're room 456," Suki said.

"It's the only room number Snoozles could remember," Toph grinned.

"Hey!"

"Mai and I are 439. It's across the hall from you guys," Zuko stated motioning to Aang and Katara.

"We're 482. Next to Carah and Lee," Pailo added. "Anyone know where they are, anyway?"

"Making out in a third floor closet," Toph smirked.

Sokka woke up. "How did you-? Right," Sokka went back to sleep.

_Bing!_

The group stepped out of the elevator and walked towards their rooms. Aang and Katara walked over to a door with a big "467". Katara opened the door and they stepped in.

"Wow," Katara breathed. The room was amazing. It was painted a soft green and the bed sheets were ocean blue and made of silk. The furniture was a light cherry and adorned with crown molding. The bathroom was blue with light granite sinks and a walk-in shower.

"Sure is a nice place," Aang agreed. He set his bag down and collapsed on one of the beds. Katara smirked and ran up to the bed. Then she jumped and landed next to Aang, making him bounce into the air. He laughed and then turned to her.

"So, what do you want to do for three hours?" he asked. She yawned and snuggled closer to him.

"I think we could just lie here and catch up on some sleep."

"What, you didn't get enough sleep on my chest?" Aang joked.

Katara yawned again and smiled into him as he wrapped his arms around her.

"You're right; this is nice."

0.o

"Hello. I am Ju Dee. Please step onto the bus and we will take a tour of the city," a young, creepy woman said. Her smile was just as big as Iroh's stomach… and that's saying something.

"Welcome to Ba Sing Se. Worst city on earth!" Toph whispered to Katara as they walked on the bus. Katara snickered and then walked over to where Aang was seated.

"Hey! Did you have a weird tour guide person too?" Katara wondered.

"Yah… Long Feng. He has these beady little eyes and a long braid," he replied.

"Are you talking about Long Feng?! He was so weird. Wasn't he like, the king's advisor or something? He was really polite, and somehow… suspicious," Sokka stroked his fake beard.

"We had this girl named Ju Dee. She was always smiling and seemed kind of, I don't know. Brainwashed, maybe," Katara cringed.

"Like I said. Ba Sing Se is the worst city on earth; and it has the weirdest people," Toph added.

"Well, I guess we just deal, and try to enjoy our stay. The tour people are only here for today, right?" Aang said, optimistically.

"Quite the contrary, young Avatar. We will be escorting you for your entire stay," a smiley voice said from behind.

"Ju Dee," Katara whispered.

"Avatar?"

"Who?"

"Aang's the avatar?!"

"Wait, what?"

"How did you know?" Toph interrogated, as Aang buried his face in his hands. Katara and Zuko stood next to him, trying to comfort him.

Ju Dee laughed. "All government officials know of the Avatar. We have known that Aang is avatar for quite some time now. It is our duty to know." She spoke with her creepy smile.

By this time, there was a massive crowd surrounding Aang.

"Are you an airbender?"

"How can you be the avatar?"

"Hey man, sorry about making fun of your earthbending."

"Guys, look! He has blue tattoo arrows on his hands!"

"Do you have them on your head too?"

It was time for Toph to step in. "Alright everybody! Break it up, break it up. Nothing to see here, just go back to your seats!"

0.o

"And that concludes our introduction to the wonderful city of Ba Sing Se!" Ju Dee smiled.

The bus echoed with sighs of relief and Iroh snoring. Then, the bus continued its way back to the hotel where the class would eat dinner. When they were in the lobby, Iroh did a head count.

"We seem to be missing two. That's strange, we had all eighteen kids when we got on the bud after our last stop. Can someone go check the bus?"

"We'll go, Iroh," Katara said loudly.

"Thank you Katara and Aang," Iroh replied with a smile. Then he turned to the rest of the group, "We will now go to the lobby to eat dinner."

Aang and Katara walked away from the crowd and towards the bus.

"Anything to get away from Ju Dee and Long Braid," Katara whispered, and the two laughed.

As they walked closer to the bus, they heard muffled yelps.

"Sokka! Come on! Everyone's inside and eating dinner!"

"Five more minutes, Gran."

Katara face palmed herself as the pair walked onto the bus.

"Suki?" Aang asked.

"Thank the spirits you guys are here! You mind helping me get Sokka up? I've tried everything- water on the face, food bribery, even kissing the guy! Nothing works…" she said, defeated.

Aang smirked. "I think I know something that'll work."

He extended both of his arms and a large gust of air was blown under Sokka. Soon, he was in the air, floating over nothing. Aang then brought him out of the bus and lofted him on top of the bus. Meanwhile, Katara and Suki were watching and trying to contain their laughter.

"Hey Sokka! Azula's using your sword to shave your head!" Aang yelled into Sokka's ear. Suddenly, the water tribe boy sprung up and put his hands on his head protectively. He then looked around at his surroundings and dropped to the roof of the bus, hanging on for dear life… what a drama queen.

"Aang!" he screeched.

Aang jumped up on top of the bus and looked down at Sokka. "Yes?"

"Get me down from here, right NOW!"

"But, we have such a nice view from here," he stated, "we could just stay up here."

Sokka growled and got up. "If you don't get me down from here, I'll," he put a fist up to Aang's face.

"Well, if you insist." Aang's smirk was the only warning before Sokka was pushed off the side of the bus, only to fall gently with the help of a pocket of air.

Katara and Suki were now rolling on the ground laughing. Sokka got up and shrugged and they walked into the lobby.

0.o

"I'm stuffed!" Katara exclaimed as they walked into their room. "But, you barely ate anything!"

"The only vegetarian food they had was tea," Aang muttered.

"Do you want to go out and get some food?" Katara asked as she jumped on her bed.

"Nah. I packed some food in my bag," he replied as he pat the seat next to him on his bed. "We can go to the grocery store down the street tomorrow."

She crawled over and they turned on the television. The first channel they turned to was Animal Planet.

_"And here we have the hog monkey! Native to the Earth Kingdom, these little guys sure are feisty! And that concludes tonight's show with me: Shu Shu!"_

Aang snickered. "Shu Shu?"

"That's what my friend named her pet dogfish!" Katara giggled. Aang smiled and gathered his girlfriend on his lap.

"You know, this is turning into an okay trip," Aang mumbled into her hair. Katara tilted her head back and kissed him…

_One make out session later (and nothing more)…_

Aang looked down at the girl lying on his chest. He heard soft breathing and looked at the clock. **11:00 PM **in big red numbers. Aang yawned and carefully got up. Then he walked over to Katara's bed, pulled the covers back, and gently lifted her into it.

"Good night, Katara," he said as he tucked her head and kissed her forehead.

She smiled and mumbled, "Good night, Aang."

Aang grinned and then made his way over to his bed. He pulled back the covers and buried himself in the covers. When he was comfortable, he set his head on the pillow. But, he heard a rustling of paper as his head connected with the fluff. He quietly slipped his hand under his pillow and took a mysterious paper out from under it. Using basic fire bending, he created a small flame with his hand to read the paper.

"_We are coming for you Avatar. We are watching you…_

_-Your worst nightmare"_

"Your worst nightmare? How cheesy!" Aang thought. But, he snapped back to real life. There was someone "watching him". Someone coming for him. Acting on instinct, he quickly got up and shut the blinds. He walked over to the door and double locked it. Then, he went over to Katara and was about to wake her up, but then he saw how peaceful she looked.

"I'll tell her in the morning."

0.o

"Aang?" Katara shook Aang, trying to wake him up. "Aang! Aang wake up, you're scaring me!"

Aang groaned and woke up. He had quite a headache, but it tripled when he looked up to find Katara on the verge of tears. He jumped up and hugged her… a little too fast I might add.

He groaned again. "Katara, what is it?"

She took a deep breath to keep back her worried voice. "Well, you missed breakfast, but I decided to let you sleep, so I got you a bowl of fruit and some toast. I've been trying to wake you up for ten minutes, and you were sweating, and…" she hugged Aang even harder.

"Katara," he moaned and pushed her away, as he coughed into his forearm. "Sorry," he wheezed. Katara put a hand up to his forehead.

"You're burning up." Katara bit her lip. "I'm going to go tell Iroh and I'll be right back, okay?"

Aang nodded as she walked out of the room.

0.o

"Aang has a bad fever and a cough. Would it be okay if he skipped the day, and me too? I'll take care of him and everything," Katara told Iroh.

Iroh stroked his (real) beard and then spoke, "I suppose. I'll have the front desk check in on you guys at noon. Well, I hope he feels better."

"Thank you, Iroh!" Katara said as she ran towards the elevator.

0.o

Katara shut the door. "I'm back."

Aang smiled a little bit. "Hey," he croaked.

"We have the day off. So, is it just a fever and a sore throat?" she asked.

"And a headache," he admitted quietly.

Katara pulled up a chair next to his bed. "Do you have a stomach ache or anything?"

Aang shook his head. "Hey, Katara? When I went to bed last night, I found this under my pillow," he stated as he pulled out the note. Katara took the note out of his hand and read it. She froze as her eyes widened.

"D-do you know who sent this?"

"No. But, I think we're safe in the hotel. And, besides, even when we're not in the hotel, we're surrounded by a huge gr-" Aang's frame was wracked with coughs. Katara held his head as he continued coughing. He groaned and collapsed on his pillow.

"Do you need something?" she asked as she stroked his cheek. He shook his head and closed his eyes.

0.o

Good? Bad? Review!!! Phew… that was tough! Did you guys enjoy it? I hope so =D I _also _hope you guys had a great holiday season and break! Woot! Alrighty… well, REVIEW!!! thanks! Over and out.


	18. author's note 2: important!

thanks a ton for all of your reviews everybody!  
I'm sorry allicat! what did you do to your leg?!  
that doesn't sound like fun.

well, hopefully the next chappie will be up soon.  
Aang will get better, and then when they're at Lake Laogai for the camping trip, some people will share their stories.

So, you guys have to vote and tell me which people you want to hear from! Obviously, i'm gonna have Aang, Katara, Toph, Sokka, and Zuko, but you have to choose the other people. You have a max of three votes!

Here are your choices:

Azula  
Mai  
Suki  
Haru  
Ty Lee  
Song  
Jin  
Pailo  
Jade  
Teo  
The Duke  
Pipsqueak  
Smeller Bee... I was gonna put Longshot, but he doesn't talk

So vote like this:  
ex. Haru, Mai, Suki  
or something like that

remember, only three votes!  
Thanks! over and out.


	19. Results so far

Okay guys!

So, there are the results I have so far!

I will except votes until Monday night, and then I'll finish writing. So, if you don't like the results, then vote! Thanks.

Suki: 5

Mai: 4

Azula: 3

Ty Lee: 2

Song: 1

Jin:1

Haru: 1

Pailo: 1

Teo :1

Long Shot:1

Vote! Thanks! Over and out.


	20. Chapter 18

Chapter 18- Second half of Day 2, Day 3, and Day 4

"Aang?" Katara whispered into his ear. His eyes twitched and fluttered open.

"Hey, Katara," he choked.

"You feeling any better?" she asked softly.

"A little. How long was I asleep?" he replied as he struggled to sit up in his bed.

"About two hours," she said as she helped him sit up.

Before Aang could say anything there was a knock on the door. Katara walked over to the door, and opened it, but no one was there. _That's strange, _she thought. Then she looked down and saw a scroll lying on the ground. She opened it carefully and read it out loud.

_So, it seems that you have fallen ill, Avatar Aang. This is but a small dose of what is to come in the future. That was lovely tea at dinner, wasn't it? I made a special cup… just for you. Nowhere is safe._

_-Your Worst Nightmare_

"Who is that weirdo? And why did they poiso-" Katara was cut off.

"Katara, why is the room spinning?" Aang asked quietly.

Katara rushed over to Aang. "Aang? Aang, the room isn't spinning. Do you feel okay?"

He opened his mouth like he was about to say something, but then slouched over. Katara quickly gathered him into her arms and shook him gently.

"W-what? What happened?" he stuttered.

"Shh. It's okay, you just fainted," she said as she placed him back on his pillow. "Someone poisoned your tea. That's why you're sick. Do you remember anything about your tea or who served it?"

"On the menu it said 'Ba Sing Se' specialty. And it had a little 'DL' next to it," he whispered.

"DL? That's weird. I've never heard of that before… it must stand for something," Katara thought out loud. But, Aang was already asleep again.

Katara smiled and placed his head in her lap. She slowly stroked his forehead with her finger as she herself dosed off.

0.o

"Ring, ring, ring! Ring, ring, ring!"

Katara jumped awake at the sound of the telephone. "Hello?" she said groggily.

_"Hi, is this Katara? A, um… Mr. Iroh gave us directions to call your room at noon," _a nice lady said on the other end.

"Oh, yes. This is Katara."

_"Hi Katara. So, how's the boy, uh, Aang?"_

"Well, he's sleeping right now. His fever has gone down slightly, and I've been making him take down many fluids. I think he should be on his feet by tomorrow."

_"Okay, that's great. Would you like me to check in with you later?"_

"Oh, no. I think we'll be fine."

_"Alright dear. Do you need anything up there? Would you like me to send up lunch?"_

"Actually, we have food up here. Thanks a lot, though."

_"Okay. Hope the boy feels better. Bye bye now."_

Katara hung up the phone and looked down to see Aang slightly awake.

"Hey Aang. How are you feeling?" she asked softly.

"Head… hurts," he groaned.

Katara sighed. "Okay. I'll check your temperature and then get some herbal medicine tea for you." She quickly got off the bed and walked to the bathroom to get the thermometer. "Put this under your tongue and leave it there," she told Aang as she walked off to make some herbal tea. When she came back she took the thermometer out of his mouth and placed the warm cup in his hands.

"What does it say?" Aang asked.

"Let's see here… It says 102," she answered. "Well, at least it went down two degrees from this morning. But it's still high."

Aang groaned and turned his head in his pillow. He set the cup on the table and proceeded to knock the covers off of him. Katara then laid down next to him and placed a hand on his bare chest. She kissed him softly on the cheek.

"I love you, Aang."

He smiled slightly and gripped her hand loosely. "Love you, too," he whispered.

And they fell asleep.

0.o

The day continued as the two slept through the afternoon and night. The next morning, Aang's fever had not gone down and Katara decided they should stay t the hotel and miss a tour around Ba Sing Se. It is now the morning of Day 4 in Ba Sing Se, and Aang insists he is now well enough to go to Lake Laogai.

0.o

"Everyone get on the bus!" Iroh yelled.

The students all gathered on the bus and sat in random places. Aang and Katara were in the middle row of the bus and were seated comfortably. In front of them was Toph and Pailo; Mai and Zuko in back of them, and Sokka and Suki across from them.

"So, what should we do today? The pamphlet says that we can go hiking, kayaking or canoeing, fishing, and diving," Katara explained.

"Well, I can't go fishing because I'm a vegetarian, and the last time we went hiking, it didn't turn out so well. So, do you want to kayak and go diving?" Aang replied.

"That sounds good. Hey, Sokka! What are you guys going to do?"

"We're going fishing and then diving so we can catch more fish," Sokka said proudly.

Katara rolled her eyes as Aang snickered. "You know, Sokka, when you go diving, you're not supposed to be catching anything," he stated.

"Well…" Sokka looked around the bus to see if Ju Dee or Long Feng was there. "What they don't know won't hurt 'em."

Katara face palmed herself and turned to Toph and Pailo.

"What are you guys doing?" she asked.

"Well, since I can't see in the water, we're going hiking and then fishing on land," Toph answered.

"Cool," Katara turned back Mai and Zuko. "What about you?"

"We're going kayaking and hiking," Zuko answered. "What about you?"

"Aang and I ar-"

"We'll be at the lake in two minutes! Everyone get your backpacks and prepare to get off of the bus!" Iroh's voice interrupted. Everyone got their backpacks equipped with sleeping bags, clothes, and cameras. The bus came to a halt and everyone got off quickly.

"Hello, thar' everyone! My name's Sal, and I'll be helpin' you fellers out today. So, until 7 o'clock, you're free to do whichever 'tivities you wanna. I recommend you only do two though, 'cause otherwise you might not be awake for our campfire t'night. So, as I was jist sayin', the kayaks and canoes are over in that there shed," Sal pointed to a small wooden cabin. "Make sure ya all put a life jacket on, so yas don't drown 'r nothing. The hikin' trails are that a way and that a way," he motioned towards two paths going opposite directions. "The divin' gear in with the kayaks. Someone will be over there to tell ya how to put on the stuff. And the fishin' poles are laid out near the tents. You're all gonna need to take a canoe out in the lake to go fishin' or, you can go over on the docks. Make sure always where a life jacket when ya go out on the lake. Mr. uh… Ee-rah should give ya'll the tent your assigned to. You can place your things in there and then head out. Have a great day, and if ya need me, I'll be aroun'."

Mr. "Ee-rah" then walked to front of the group. "Tent one: Jet, Azula, Smellerbee, Longshot, Pipsqueak, and The Duke. Tent two: Suki, Sokka, Toph, Pailo, Katara, and Aang. Tent Three: Haru, Ty Lee, Carah, Lee, Zuko, and Mai. Tent Four: Jin, Song, On Ji, Hide, Kuzon, and Bon Su."

**(A/N: So, what's going to be special about this chapter, is that I'm going to follow certain people's day. So, I'll follow Aang and Katara for a while, and then go all the way back to morning and follow Suki and Sokka. Got it? Just want to make sure your not confused =D )**

**Aang and Katara**

"Do you want to go kayaking or diving first?" Aang asked Katara.

"Let's see what other people are doing. There might not be anymore boats left now," Katara answered as they set there things in Tent two. Aang kept a small messenger bag with him that had lunch for two, water, and a camera. They walked to shed and were surprised to see that there was instead no diving gear left. So, they rolled out a yellow kayak and two oars. When they had put their life jackets on, they got into the kayak and pushed off the shore. They paddled out into the middle of the lake and then set their oars down.

"This is a really nice lake," Katara noted, admiring the crystal clear water. She let her hands relax into the lake.

"There's so much fish!" Sokka called from far away. He was in fact saying this to Suki, but was loud enough for the entire camp to hear him.

Aang smiled and then continued to paddle. When they reached a remote area of the lake, they stopped and Aang pulled out their lunch. That sat quietly and ate, enjoying each other's company.

"Has your head ache gone away yet?" Katara asked.

"Almost. It's kind of a dull pain now," he answered.

"That's good…" Katara reached out her hand over the water, extended her fingers, and glided her hand over the water. The small block of ice was created next to kayak as Katara onto it. "Come on," she motioned for Aang to sit next to her. Aang smirked and crawled onto the ice. He threw an arm around her shoulder and she wrapped her arms around his torso.

She looked up at him and kissed him softly. He kissed back and soon it became a slow and passionate kiss. However, they lost balance on the ice raft and fell into the water.

0.o

"Ready to go diving?" Aang asked and Katara tightly gripped his hand. She nodded her head and slid her goggles over her eyes.

"Okay, one, two, three, jump!" Aang yelled. The pair jumped off the dock into the shallow waters of Lake Laogai. Their heads were immersed in water and they began to swim with their snorkels around. They were both looking at a yellow and blue fish when suddenly a black and green suit appeared out from the bottom of the lake. Aang and Katara emerged from the water to examine the suit.

"What does it say?" Katara asked as Aang read the embroidery.

"It says 'DL'. Just like my tea did!"

Katara moved her head towards the suit. "Do you hear something? Like a ticking sound?"

0.o

**Sokka and Suki**

"Let's go diving first!" Sokka exclaimed as he and Suki walked out of their tent.

"Okay. We better hurry before the gear is all taken!"

When they reached the shed, they were happy to see that only two sets of gear were left. They put on their gear and headed towards the lake. Sokka began to run, pulling Suki's arm with him.

"Sokkaaaa!" she screamed as they both fell off the dock and into the lake. They both then popped their heads back up into the air and Suki face palmed herself.

"Well, I did give you some warning," he gave her a big smile. Suki couldn't help but laugh, and peck him on the cheek. Sokka smiled inwardly and looked at the water.

"There's so much fish!" he screamed.

The rest of their time diving was spent by Suki laughing at Sokka who was trying to catch a fish with his hands. Unfortunately, the fish all slipped out of his fingers, slapped his face with their tails, and swam away.

Eventually, Sokka gave up all together. "Stupid fish! They're vicious! Oh well, we should go eat lunch now."

0.o

"I think I'll have better luck this time since I'm powered by giant cow meat and have a real fishing pole," Sokka stated happily.

"I'm sure you'll catch a big one, Sokka," Suki reassured.

"My fish is bigger than yours!" Toph called from a distance. Sokka scowled, but continued to row. When they got far enough into the lake, Sokka stopped rowing and the two got out their fishing rods. Suddenly, there was a loud boom and the water rippled beneath their boat.

"What was that?!"

0.o

**Toph and Pailo**

"So, where does this trail lead to?" Toph asked.

"The map says it leads to the top of the mountain," he replied.

Toph's eyes widened. 'All the way to the top of the mountain?!' she thought. 'That's ten miles there and back! And we're only two miles into it and I'm already tired.'

Then she smirked and sat down abruptly. "Lunch time!"

0.o

"Ready to go fishing?" Pailo smiled.

"I think I'll have better luck this time since I'm powered by giant cow meat and have a real fishing pole," Toph heard Sokka say from the dock.

"My fish is bigger than yours!" she yelled out him. "Yah, I'm ready," she said to Pailo. He got out the rods and placed one in her hands. They cast their lines into the water. Out of nowhere, a boom was heard and felt, and it sent Pailo into the water. When he rose from the water, he saw Toph's eye wide.

"Did you feel what I just felt?"

**(A/N: I hope I'm building up the suspense. Although, what happened is kind of obvious, you don't know the result! Mua haha! Okay, back to the story!)**

0.o

**Zuko and Mai**

"This water is so boring. It never moves. It just kind of stays perfectly still," Mai observed.

Zuko snickered and continued rowing. Then he stopped and they looked at each other.

"Well, this is fun," Mai said.

Zuko rolled his eyes and smirked. "How about some meat sandwiches?"

0.o

"This path goes around the mountain. It's only three miles," Zuko told Mai.

"Okay," she gripped his hand with hers and they continued walking into the forest. "Green is such an awful color."

Zuko smiled. "You're so beautiful when you hate the world."

"I don't hate you."

"I don't hate you, too." They leaned into the kiss, but an explosion was heard in the distance. All of the catbirds in the trees squawked and flew away. Mai said in a monotone voice:

"Where did all the catbirds go?"

0.o

**(A/N: Okay, no more following certain people. My days as stalker are over =D . So, this is normal POV. And… Action!)**

"Aang! Katara!" Toph raced over to the dock where the explosion was heard from. Aang's arms were still wrapped around Katara and he was hugging her protectively. Then, Sokka and Suki came racing out of their boat.

"What happened?" Sokka yelled.

Toph bit her lip and Suki said, "We don't know. But, Aang has a pretty big gash on his head. Katara seems fine, but they're both unconscious."

Pailo lifted Aang carefully and Sokka took Katara. They brought the couple into their tent and rolled out their cots. Slowly, they set them on it as Suki tried to bandage Aang's head.

"What's going on?" Zuko ran into the tent with Iroh and Mai close behind him.

"We don't really know. There was an explosion and we found Katara and Aang unconscious near the docks. Aang has a big gash on his forehead," Pailo explained.

"Is everything under control here, or do you need my assistance?" Iroh asked.

"I think we're fine Iroh," Toph answered and smiled lightly.

"W-what?" Katara groaned.

"Katara! Your awake! What happened?" Sokka questioned.

Katara looked around the tent to see Toph, Sokka, Suki, Pailo, Mai, Zuko, and Aang.

"What's wrong with Aang?!"

"Calm down Katara. He just got a big gash on his forehead," Sokka thought over his words and hit himself. "Oops," he said quietly. Katara was already next to Aang and pulled water out of her canteen. She set her now glowing hand on the wound and the gash disappeared leaving only a small scar. Katara sighed and sat back down.

"So, what happened?" Toph asked again.

"Well, we were diving when out of nowhere there was a black and green suit that floated to the shore. We looked at it and it had the letters 'DL' on it. You remember what I told you about Aang's tea, right?" The group nodded. "Well, anyways, the 'DL' was embroidered on the suit. Then, I heard a ticking sound and Aang opened a pocket. I think he found a bomb because next thing I knew, he knocked me over and I think he hit his head on the edge of the dock. We were both knock out."

"Well, the 'DL' poisoned his tea, and then sent him a bomb. I have a feeling these guys want to hurt Aang," Sokka observed.

"Thank you captain obvious," Toph said sarcastically.

"Ughn…"

"Aang!"

"W-what happened?" he asked quietly.

"Remember the suit?" Katara asked.

Aang's eyes went wide. "There was a bomb in it! And, we jumped out of the way, and…" he trailed off, seeing the people in the tent.

"Katara told the whole thing," Suki said.

"Cook out is in five minutes! Will everyone be out by the blue docks in five minutes!"

0.o

Everyone was huddled together on five separate logs, each holding six people. They held out their sticks with food over the fire. Some had turtle duck, some had giant cow, but Aang- well, Aang had a grilled piece of corn.

"How was ev'ryones day?" Sal asked.

"Good."

"Fun."

"Exciting."

"Bearable."

"Awesome!"

"I hate nature."

"I had a good time."

"Shut up, airhead!"

Iroh cleared his throat. "Jet," he growled as a warning.

Aang rolled his eyes, and Katara snuggled into his arm.

"Well, if everyone is finished eating, you many leave. Remember, stay in the campsite. Don't go hiking or in the lake. You may go into others' tents with their permission, but you must be in your own sleeping bag by eleven. Good night!" Iroh finished.

Aang and Katara walked towards their tent while others followed. Toph, Pailo, Mai, Zuko, Suki, Sokka, Katara, Aang, Lee, Carah, Haru, and Ty Lee crammed into a circle in the tent.

"Soooo… what do you guys want to talk about?" Zuko wondered.

"I think we should get to know everybody a little bit better. You know, share a little bit of our history and stuff," Suki suggested.

"Sounds good to me," Katara said.

"Sure."

"Why not?"

*Nod*

"Okay, who wants to start?"

There was silence.

"Oh, alright. I'll start," Toph sighed. "Well, I grew up in Gaoling. Then, my family moved to Omashu to start a business. I went to school there, as you all know. My parents became rich almost instantly. They were over protective and over bearing. They controlled everything I did," she paused. "They thought that because I was blind, I was weak and helpless. That I needed assistance. I had guards escort me everywhere. They didn't want me to go to boarding school. So I-" Toph bit her lip and sighed. "You know, I've never told anyone this, but, I… I ran away to come to boarding school."

Everyone gasped and their eyes widened.

"You didn't," Katara whispered rhetorically.

"Yah, well… that's life I guess. They'll probably kill me when I go back," she smirked.

"I guess I'll go next then," Suki smiled. Everyone nodded. "Well, kind of like Toph, I didn't grow up in Omashu. I lived on Kyoshi Island and trained there to become a Judo master. Then, my uncle Oyji sent me to Omashu to live with my cousins. There, I formed the Kyoshi warriors as most of you know. And that's about it. My favorite color is green. I have a pet coyfish back on Kyoshi, and I've never ridden the Unagi. Your turn, Sokka."

"Me?! Why me?"

"'Cause I told you to," she grinned.

Sokka huffed. "Fine. So, I was born in the South Pole. But, with my dad on business, we moved to Omashu. Katara and I kind of lived on our own for most of our lives because our mom and gran gran decided to stay in the South," Sokka's eyes narrowed in hatred, but then opened happily. "I play lots of sports, I like blue, and I am an expert with reading maps, throwing boomerangs, and wielding a sword," he finished proudly.

"Aren't we the modest one?" Toph said sarcastically.

"Okay, now I get to pick who goes next! That should be our new rule. Whoever goes gets to pick the next person. And I choose… Zuko!"

Zuko scowled. "Whatever. My name is Zuko. I grew up in the Fire Nation and moved to Omashu. The end."

"Oh, come on Zuko! Live a little!" Katara encouraged.

Zuko groaned and continued. "My father is the principal and the grandfather is the Fire Lord… but I'm sure you all knew that. I don't like my father," he paused. "He gave me this scar. It was an Agni Kai- a fire duel. And, let's just say that when I say I got burned, I really mean it."

The tent went silent and everyone's heads were down.

"Umm… awkward silence. I guess I'll Mai."

"Gee, thanks," she said sarcastically. "Well, I don't really have a sob story or anything. No offense. I was a wealthy child. My parents are the governors of Omashu. I could have everything I wanted. But, I had to be obedient, and well-behaved. I was an only child, but my parents put most of their attention towards my father's political career. I hate most things. Zuko is my boyfriend, obviously. School is boring and homework is death. That about sums it up."

"Um… how about we get off this dark genre?" Aang fakely grinned.

"Ty Lee," everyone said at once.

"Oh, okay!" Ty Lee started in a happy voice. "I also grew up in the fire nation. With my parents and six sisters who looked exactly like me. It was a little bit annoying, but you get used to it. As much as I love my sisters, I'm glad they stayed in the fire nation when I went to live in Omashu. My absolute favorite color is pink! Um… I think I want to be a gymnast in the circus someday! Your turn Katara!"

"Umm… Sokka kind of said everything. So, I guess I'll share some more personal stuff. I love my mom a lot. But, I have to admit, I was really mad when she and gran gran decided to stay in the south Pole. They never really gave an explanation… they just said their good byes and stayed. I'm pretty sure Sokka was mad too, because our dad is always on business, so we never get to see him. We were pretty much forced to grow up twice as fast as we should, because we lived alone in our apartment every since we were ten years old. I guess you're up Aang," she smiled.

"Hi. I live in a small village outside of Ba Sing Se. My parents didn't want me when I was a baby, so they left him to their neighbor, Gyatso. Gyatso raised me like his own son. He was great- more than I could ask for. Yah, I'm the Avatar and the last Airbender, yada yada yada. That's about it."

"What are your tattoos for?" Ty Lee asked.

"They symbolize a mastery of Airbending," he replied.

"Did it hurt to get them?" Sokka questioned.

"Yah. It was probably the most painful thing I can imagine. They had to shave my head too, which kind of sucked. The tattoo artists used a long needle. He would dip it in the red paint and then dot it on my head, back, and limbs. All I remember is blood. Lots and lots of blood. I was swollen and purple for a few weeks. But, eventually my hair grew back and I was back to normal. Although, I don't really know how the red ink turned light blue."

The girls had their hands over their mouth in disgust and pity, but the boys (and Toph) just cringed and winced.

Suki yawned. "Well, it's ten thirty guys. I think I'm going to go to sleep."

"Yah, it's time to hit the hay."

"See you all tomorrow!"

Kids walked out of the tent and soon the only people that were left were Sokka, Suki, Toph, Pailo, Aang, and Katara.

"Night everyone," Aang said as he pulled his sleeping bag next to Katara's. He wrapped an arm around her and kissed her forehead.

"Goodnight. Love you," he whispered.

"Love you too," she snuggled into his embrace, and the entire camp fell asleep.

0.o

Good? Bad? Review!!! Phew… that was a long chapter! Longest one yet I do believe. Well, I'm actually pretty happy with the way this turned out. Review please! Thanks!


End file.
